PUBLIC VALUATIONS: GLOBAL EDUCATION, WORKFORCE, AND MONEY
We track a defined set of public valuations for education, workforce and related fintech companies. In keeping with a global theme, our focus is on businesses operating within or across major Emerging and Frontier Markets and excluding predominantly domestic-oriented businesses.
You can read our latest valuation and commentaries here:
INDEX PORTFOLIO
Sector Composition
- Education and Learning: includes pre-K to lifelong learning in all modalities from physical school chains to online learning tools.
- Workforce: is broadly defined to include productivity tools, job search and match, and HR tech platforms such as job sites
- Fintech: this includes all specialized payments and solutions platforms that facilitate work, employment and business formation.
Weighting
The index portfolio includes a broad cross-section of companies as part of a broad and socially impactful sector allocation. We track pricing through equities and equity-linked instruments. There is currently no allocation for education or workforce relevant cypto-currencies.
In terms of weighting, the global market penetration and scale within the Workforce and related Fintech sectors are significantly (> 4x) larger than the Education sector, despite the higher number of constituent companies in Education. This is because most Education companies have traditionally focused on capturing local market share and have developed a far smaller footprint across global markets due to scaling and regulatory issues.
Our aim is to provide a representative set of constituents that operate globally and, in this sense, we are not concerned with particular weightings or re-balancing over time.
Constituents
Workforce and Money
| Company | Country | Region | Sector |
| SEEK Limited | Australia | Asia | Job Search |
| 51Job | China | Asia | Job Search |
| Recruit | Japan | Asia | Job Search |
| Atlassian | Australia | Asia | Productivity |
| Rare Job | Japan | Asia | L&D |
| Randstad | Netherlands | Europe | Workforce |
| Upwork | USA | Americas | Workforce |
| Slack | USA | Americas | Productivity |
| Shopify | USA | Americas | Productivity |
| Zoom | China | Asia | Productivity |
| Infosys | India | Asia | Productivity |
| Mindtree | India | Asia | Productivity |
| Adecco | Switzerland | Europe | Productivity |
| Cornerstone on Demand | USA | Americas | Productivity |
| Workday | USA | Americas | Productivity |
| Crowdstrike | USA | Americas | Productivity |
| Quhuo | China | Asia | Productivity |
| Twilio | USA | Americas | Productivity |
| Workforce Holdings | South Africa | Americas | Workforce |
| Adyen | Netherlands | Europe | Payments |
| Fiserv | USA | Americas | Payments |
| Square | USA | Americas | Payments |
| StoneCo | Brazil | Americas | Payments |
| Fivvr Intl | Israel | MENA | Workforce |
| UiPath | USA | Americas | Workforce |
Education
| Company | Country | Region | Sector |
| Bright Scholar | China | Asia | Pre-K/K12 |
| China Education Group | China | Asia | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| China Yuhua Education | China | Asia | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| Koolearn Technology | China | Asia | AST |
| Maple Leaf Ed Systems | China | Asia | Pre-K/K12 |
| LAIX | China | Asia | ELL |
| Offcn Education Technology | China | Asia | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| TAL Education Group | China | Asia | AST |
| China Xinhua Education | China | Asia | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| OneSmart Education | China | Asia | Pre-K/K12 |
| China New Higher Ed Group | China | Asia | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| China Online Ed Group (51 Talk) | China | Asia | ELL |
| Hailiang Education | China | Asia | Pre-K/K12 |
| China East Education | China | Asia | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| New Oriental | China | Asia | AST |
| Minsheng | China | Asia | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| Puxin | China | Asia | Pre-K/K12 |
| Qtone | China | Asia | Software/LMS |
| GSX Tech Edu | China | Asia | AST |
| Wisdom Education | China | Asia | Pre-K/K12 |
| RISE | China | Asia | Pre-K/K12 |
| Afya Ltd | Brazil | Americas | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| Anima Holding SA | Brazil | Americas | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| Arco Platform | Brazil | Americas | Software/LMS |
| Cogna Eduacao | Brazil | Americas | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| SER Educational | Brazil | Americas | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| Vasta Platform | Brazil | Americas | Software/LMS |
| IDP | Australia | Asia | ELL |
| G8 | Australia | Asia | Pre-K/K12 |
| 3P Learning | Australia | Asia | Software/LMS |
| Redhill Education | Australia | Asia | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| Virscend Education | Hong Kong | Asia | Pre-K/K12 |
| Chungdahm Learning | Singapore | Asia | Pre-K/K12 |
| Raffles | Singapore | Asia | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| Benesse/Berlitz | Japan | Asia | ELL |
| Overseas Education | Singapore | Asia | Pre-K/K12 |
| Visang Education | Korea | Asia | Software/LMS |
| Daekyo | Korea | Asia | Pre-K/K12 |
| EduComp | India | Asia | Software/LMS |
| MT Educare | India | Asia | Software/LMS |
| Aptech | India | Asia | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| Curro Holdings | South Africa | Africa | Pre-K/K12 |
| Advtech | South Africa | Africa | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| Pearson | UK | Europe | Pre-K/K12 |
| K12 | US | Americas | Pre-K/K12 |
| 2U | US | Americas | Higher Ed/Vocat |
| Coursera | US | Americas | Higher Ed/Vocat |
Valuation Metrics
On a technical level, we calculate EV/EBITDA multiples on a past (TTM) basis which provides a useful snapshot of valuation based on forward and price expectations which we then compare with relative market capitalization.
Figures 1 and 2 provide real-time data updates (monthly).
Figure 1: Global Workforce and Related Fintech
Figure 2: Global Education
M&A ACTIVITY: CROSS-BORDER TRANSACTIONS
Through the Covid period, cross-border M&A activity is accelerating across workforce and education segments, from education and training to career navigation, job search, workforce alignment, AI matching and productivity.
Our database has tracked over 20 notable cross-border acquisitions tracked between December 2019 and October 2020, with an additional 5 through May 2021. Key investors continue to be based from the US, Australia, China, and parts of Europe. Acquisition targets are predominantly in Asia (Figure 5).
Yet in terms of addressable market value this activity is still a drop in the ocean. Figures 3 and 4 map out the latest data by region and company.
Figure 3. Cross-Border Acquisition Leaders
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