Noon Academy raises $13 million in pre-Series B round led by STV

Noon Academy, a Saudi Arabian online learning platform, announced on June 21, 2020 that it had raised $13 million in a pre-Series B funding round. The round was led by Riyadh-based venture capital firm STV, with Alturki Holding and NFX Ventures also taking part.

According to the announcement, the new capital brought the company's total funding to more than $21 million. Noon said it had more than 6 million registered users and had added about 3 million students since the outbreak of COVID-19. Part of the money was set aside for a new hub in London to house its product, design and data science teams. The company also stated a goal of bringing together 50 million students and tutors by 2023.

Founded in 2013, Noon started as a test-preparation website and later developed into a social learning platform built around study groups, peer interaction and competitions. At the time of the round it employed about 120 people and operated in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, India and Pakistan. The raise came during a period in which the company reported rapid growth in sign-ups after the pandemic began, and the round was oversubscribed against an initial target of $5 million.