Tetr College of Business, one of the world’s newest and most ambitious global business schools, has closed an USD 18 million (~INR 160 crore) maiden funding round co-led by Owl Ventures and Bertelsmann India Investments (BII)—a deal that positions the institution for aggressive international expansion and deeper program development.
Tetr College of Business seed round structured through the issuance of 3,130 Series A CCPS and 20 equity shares by parent entity Pmmue Eduservices, values the company at approximately INR 644 crore (~USD 73 million) post-money, according to industry estimates. Owl Ventures contributed roughly INR 88.19 crore (~USD 10M), while BII invested INR 66.14 crore (~USD 7.5M).
Global Campuses, Wider Academic Portfolio
The fresh capital will power Tetr College of Business’s transition from an emerging, experimental business school into a multi-continent education platform. The funds have been earmarked for:
- Three new campuses in the United States, Europe, and Dubai
- Expansion of Tetr’s ten-country operating network across North America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Africa
- Development of new academic offerings, including programs in management, entrepreneurship, and the recently launched Master’s in Management and Technology (MiM-Tech)
Backers Owl Ventures and BII will also enable Tetr College of Business to tap into a global education ecosystem, including partners such as MasterClass, Newsela, Degreed, Labster, Relias, Alliant International University, and Eruditus.
A New-Age B-School Built on “Learn by Doing”
Founded in 2024 by entrepreneur Pratham Mittal, Tetr College has built a differentiated “global experiential learning” model. Students don’t simply study business—they launch ventures across continents while learning at partner universities such as IIT (India), NUS (Singapore), and Cornell (USA).
Its faculty roster includes professors from Harvard, Stanford, MIT, Cornell, and industry leaders from NASA, SoftBank India, and others—an unusually high-caliber lineup for such a young institution.
Tetr began with a bold experiment: embedding entrepreneurial execution into the curriculum. Early results appear promising:
- First cohort: 110 students
- Ventures launched: 44
- Combined revenue: ~USD 3,24,000 (~INR 2.87 crore)
- Several startups already raised external funding
Rapid Growth and Selective Admissions
Entering its second year, Tetr has witnessed substantial momentum:
- Applications up more than 50%
- Intake expanded to 200 students representing 50+ countries
- Acceptance rate: ~2.6%
- Average SAT score: 1490
Notably, many admits have turned down top-tier institutions such as King’s College London, University of Warwick, Northeastern University, UMass Boston, Indiana University Bloomington, and University of Washington—a sign of Tetr’s rising global appeal.
Voices from the Investment Round
Founder Pratham Mittal framed the raise as validation of Tetr’s cross-border entrepreneurial model:
“Tetr was conceived as a truly global school for entrepreneurship, built as a lived experience across countries and markets. This round… demonstrates our strength in attracting premier global talent.”
Tarun Gangwar, Co-Founder and COO, emphasised operational execution:
“Our focus now will be on student experience, academic delivery, partnerships, and outcomes across upcoming campuses.”
From the investor side, Pankaj Makkar, Managing Director, BII, highlighted alignment with future-ready education:
“As the world becomes multi-polar and disruptive innovations in AI reshape industries, models must adapt. Tetr sits at the center of that transformation.”
Financial Snapshot: Early-Stage, Pre-Revenue
As of FY24, Tetr remained in the pre-revenue stage, reporting:
- Zero operating income
- Net loss: ~INR 70 lakh
Driven largely by marketing and employee expenses
FY25 numbers have not yet been disclosed, but the scale-up suggests significant operational investments are underway.
Analyst View: Why This Deal Matters
From a market’s perspective, the Tetr raise reflects three converging trends:
1. Globalisation of Higher Education
Students are seeking multi-country exposure and entrepreneurial experience. Tetr’s model mirrors the globalisation of talent markets and remote-work-enabled mobility.
2. Venture Capital’s Renewed Focus on EdTech 2.0
Unlike the post-pandemic content-heavy edtech boom, Tetr represents the next phase: experiential, hybrid, and credential-rich education models that combine offline + online learning with real business building.
3. India as a Base for Global Institutions
The fact that a globally oriented business school is being built from India—and attracting world-class investors—is an indicator of the country’s educational soft power.
What’s Next for Tetr?
Tetr College of Business seed funding signals the company’s ambition to evolve from a novel startup-school hybrid into a globally recognised institution. Key watchpoints for investors and analysts include:
- Speed of campus rollouts across the US, Europe, and Dubai
- Scalability of the “learn by doing” venture-building model
- Unit economics & revenue pathways, given the pre-revenue status
- Conversion of partnerships into differentiated academic value
If execution follows vision, Tetr could emerge as one of the world’s first truly multinational education brands built from scratch—a rare feat in the higher-education landscape.
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