After establishing its curriculum and welcoming its founding class, the company claiming to challenge the university experience, Minerva, has received US$70mn in its second round of financing.
Three Chinese investors– TAL Education Group, ZhenFund and Yongjin Group– have led the financing while the original seed investor Benchmark Capital has returned to round out the backing.
In a statement, Minerva chairman and CEO Ben Nelson said the company would use the funding to scale operations of Minerva Schools at KGI.
To date 70% of the new funding has been allocated and the remaining 30% will be earmarked by the beginning of 2015
“Bringing together partners for this round of funding that include one of the most respected, top quality, and innovative education companies with TAL and the most forward thinking technology investors with Benchmark, ZhenFund and Yongjin, is a powerful combination committing to Minerva’s next stage of development,” he said.
The company has set out to disrupt the traditional higher education system by delivering classes remotely via a bespoke video platform while students share accommodation together in cities around the world.
To date 70% of the series B funding has been allocated the company said and the remaining 30% will be earmarked by the beginning of 2015.
A representative from TAL will sit on the Minerva Project’s Board, joining Nelson and Kevin Harvey, general partner at Benchmark Capital. Nelson will also appoint two additional board members at a later date the company said.
In 2012, Minerva received $25mn in its first round of funding from Benchmark Capital which was used to gain accreditation from Western Association of Schools and Colleges and hire faculty members.
Additional financing came from personal investors from eBay and external board members of Twitter, who funded internet giants Instagram and Snapchat.
In September it welcomed the founding class at its base-campus in San Francisco.
