Dealflow | July 11, 2018

Elevar, Omidyar, Rise Fund back Latin American literacy startup Grupo VI-DA

Jessica Pothering
ImpactAlpha Editor

Jessica Pothering

ImpactAlpha, July 11 – Buenos Aires-based Grupo VI-DA is compiling a digital library of texts and tools to “democratize access to high quality Spanish-language [content].” Ninety percent of Latin Americans can access mobile broadband, but 46% percent slip below minimum reading and comprehension standards by the time they’re teenagers, according to Grupo VI-DA’s statement.

The startup’s model is to partner with publishers to deliver books and texts to schools and companies at a lower cost than institutions would spend buying physical books. It works with 600 publishers and offers more than 600,000 works. The company is also planning to develop teacher instruction and assessment tools.

  • Impact backers… Elevar Equity, Omidyar Network and TPG’s Rise Fund committed an undisclosed amount to the company’s Series A funding round.
  • Co-investors… Elevar and the Rise Fund have a co-investment partnership and have jointly backed other education deals together, including Digital House, which is also based in Buenos Aires, and Mumbai-based LEAD.
  • Trend spotting… The $2 billion Rise Fund’s debut deal—a whopping $120 million investment in Everfi—was also an education-focused company.