Physics Wallah enjoys a rosy IPO day, bucking the broader slowdown in Indian edtech

Summary

Indian edtech startup Physics Wallah ended its first day as a public company on a high, with its shares closing 44% higher than they were listed for, indicating that the country’s edtech sector may still recover after years of gloom. Priced at ₹109, the company’s shares climbed as high as ₹161.99 before closing at ₹156.49, valuing the seven-year-old company at ₹448 billion (around $5 billion). That’s well above its listing valuation of ₹315 billion (approximately $3.6 billion), and roughly 79% higher than its last private valuation of $2.8 billion in September 2024. The strong IPO highlights the remarkable growth arc of Physics Wallah, which started off as a YouTube channel run by founder Alakh Pandey in 2016. It now stands out in an industry otherwise reeling from layoffs, a funding drought, and the unraveling of once-high-flying rival Byju’s. Today, the company offers test-preparation and upskilling courses via its website, apps and offline centers. In the financial year 2025, Physics Wallah said its revenue increased 49% to ₹28.9 billion (approximately $326 million) from a year earlier, while its net loss narrowed to ₹2.4 billion (roughly $27.5 million) from ₹11.31 billion (about $127.7 million). Online channels accounted for 48.6% of operating revenue, while offline centers contributed 46.8%. The company also reported a 4.5 million paying subscribers, a 23% increase from last year. The company’s rise comes as its larger rivals struggle to operate. Byju’s, once India’s most valuable startup at $22 billion, was engulfed in a corporate-governance crisis, has been fighting legal battles with lenders, and is dealing with a severe cash crunch that has forced mass layoffs. The Bengaluru-based startup is currently undergoing insolvency proceedings in both India and the U.S. Unacademy, another high-profile edtech has also sharply scaled back operations and cut staff, and is reported to be in talks to be acquired by upskilling platform UpGrad for $300 to $400 million — a ...