eEducation Albert acquires Scottish EdTech Sumdog
Sumdog has been purchased by eEducation Albert, amid booming demand for the education producst and services.
Launched in 1994, Sumdog has since become a leading B2B player in the EdTech market, with a strong presence in the US as well as across Europe. Headquartered in Edinburgh, Sumdog’s digital platform is used by children between the ages of five and 14 its interactive games help with mathematics, spelling and grammar.
As it can be adapted for British or North American curriculums, it is currently deployed across around 15% of all UK schools and around 10% in the US.
Göteborg-headquartered eEducation Albert offers a similar platform in the Nordics – with a digital platform enabling children to study mathematics, Swedish, geography and code through thousands of fun and educational exercises. The content has been developed together with experienced teachers and educators, to ensure that it is in line with the national school curriculum.
As eEducation Albert looks to expand its footprint beyond its domestic market, it has acquired Sumdog for an undisclosed fee. The deal strengthens its business-to-business service, as well as helping with UK market entry. Meanwhile, the move presents opportunities for Sumdog to boost its own global profile, with a company it sees many key synergies with.
Andrew Hall, Founder and Chief Executive of Sumdog, commented, “Over the past 12 years, we have developed Sumdog to become an important digital aid for teachers, while we have always strived for children to love the product itself. It feels very exciting to now take the next step on our journey as part of eEducation Albert – we see a perfect match between us both in the offer and the culture, where children’s learning is at the centre.”
The dealmakers
A number of professional services firms worked on the deal. eEducation Albert was represented by legal firm Bristows, and advised by Big Four consultancy PwC.
Meanwhile, Sumdog received legal advice from law firm MacRoberts, and corporate finance advisory from Grant Thornton’s Scotland branch.
Neil McInnes, Head of Corporate Finance for Grant Thornton in Scotland, noted that the deal came after the pandemic highlighted the importance of technology across all sectors, including education – as every school had been forced to pivot to home learning during the lockdowns. Due to this, he confirmed the consultancy had seen “significant interest from investors in this space and a strong pipeline of deals.”
The Grant Thornton partner continued, “Sumdog is a great success story for an innovative digital business achieving impactful results in the school sector, and underlines Scotland’s reputation in the global technology market. The acquisition will not only enhance eEducation Albert’s offering from B2C to B2B as well, it will also expand its global reach to have a stronger footprint in both the UK and US.”
