On April 30, 2021, an India-based K-12 education company announced that it would be raising close to the US $5 million in the pre-ICO sale of its UnfoldU tokens (UNFLD). This made me research this business entity that is boasting about the massive boom the online education company may witness in India due to the ongoing lockdown thanks to the enormous spread of coronavirus pandemic and some aggressive adoption of the internet Indian people. Indians are indeed enjoying one of the cheapest internet plans in the world. A gigabyte of internet costs less than the US $0.20 in India, and more than 60% of people in India own a smartphone or a laptop. Hence, the businesses being established on the internet sees a bright future. After the e-commerce boom, it looks like that the next big boom is expected in the online education space.
UnfoldU has announced that it is targeting to raise the US $100 million in total where the US $5 million in the pre-ICO sale will be raised and the remaining will be raised in the ICO sale, which will be split into two phases of US $50 million and the US $45 million each. This brought us to the question of where the company is worth raising this capital and does it even have a future, and you should invest or give it a pass?
UnfoldU has priced its token at the US $10, reasonably priced, and targets listed on WazirX and Gate.io.
What is UnfoldU?
UnfoldU business group has substantial business interest in India. Probably, India has the highest number of young people in the world. Over 300 million students are in school, which equates to the entire population of the United States, and due to the unprecedented lockdown, almost all of them are doing their schooling from home. This opens an enormous market, but what matters the most is the competition which this market has. Almost all of the top companies are well funded and have access to the larger pool of resources, but this is also true that none of them is in the crypto markets with their tokens. So, technically UnfoldU will be the first Indian-focused online education company to raise capital from the crypto markets for business expansion.
Last year, the company was even covered by Forbes International for its significant contribution to the online education space. The company desired to raise the US $100 million last year, but the Corona pandemic spoiled the sport.
Is UnfoldU a brand?
As per my research, the company has excellent content and has acquired 100,000 students majorly by offering a trial version of their product, out of which 10,000-12,000 are paying. If their pre-ICO and ICO sales go through, it is evident that the company can aggressively expand and compete with BYJU, Dexler, or Educomp. The content quality is excellent, and the company directly reaches the Tier II cities of India, which makes it a preferred brand. The company is in business operation since 2014. Hence, the future looks bright. It is an undeniable fact that UnfoldU is equally present in all our tiers. Still, they are strategically placing them in the business zone, expecting aggressive adoption of online education. We still do not have the whitepaper in place, which answers most of my questions.
Strengths of UnfoldU
- India’s first online education company to launch an ICO.
- Established business, hence it offers a concrete opportunity to the investors.
- The UNFLD tokens will become an integral part of the internal economy of the industry.
- The content quality is at par with the top companies.
- Focus on Tier-II cities where none of the top brands are focusing.
- Direct marketing approach by giving a home demonstration of its products
- Over 100,000 users with more than 10% paying already.
- Available at a valuation that is not even 10% of the top Indian players.
- India has over 300 million school-going students and has less than five players who dominate the market.
- Opportunity to earn solid returns by investing for 1-3 years.
Weakness of UnfoldU
- They are competing against the top online education leaders.
- Tier-II cities consist of people with a less technical background.
- The company has less capital to revise and update its content constantly. The company may need more than the US $100 million to spend on marketing and content development.
- There may be some cash burning to support aggressive marketing, resulting in more considerable revenue but no or negligible profits for the next 2-3 years. More considerable income may, however, help the company to secure a higher market cap number.
Use Case of UnfoldU Tokens
- Payment of fee in UNFLD tokens
- Reimbursing content creators
- Rewarding students and content creators
- The token may also be accepted by India based schools and colleges for payments
UnfoldU is proposing an excellent bonus for its initial retail investors. This may become a perfect opportunity for the people who invest in ICO’s or believe in the online education market.
Rating: 3.8 2/ 5.00
Investment Grade: Yes
Possibility of upside: Yes