Australia's Blue Sky buys stake in Origo Education

The exact size of the investment was not disclosed but Blue Sky said in a statement that it had committed multi-million dollars. The capital will go toward research and development intended to expand Origo's product base and also the hiring of additional sales and teaching professionals.

The company was founded in Brisbane in 1997 by mathematics educators James Burnett and Calvin Irons. Their initial plan was to work with Australian schools but as Origo's products have become more sophisticated and cloud-based, so its customer base has become increasingly international.

The company generates over 80% of its revenue from clients in the US, where the implementation of state-wide core teaching standards is expected to result in increased demand for materials. Origo's core product - Stepping Stones - has been adopted by three of the top 50 school districts in the US.

"Origo's founders are sought out by schools and education administrators globally, and they have developed impressive global intellectual property over many years," said Lachlan McMurdo, investment director at Blue Sky. "The key competitive advantage lies in the high quality of Origo's products, and successful expansion into the massive US market is proof of the global scalability of the business."

Cross-border expansion has underpinned the investment thesis for a number of deals in Australia's education sector. CHAMP Private Equity turned Study Group into a global business and sold it to Providence Equity Partners in 2010, although subsequent investments have tended to focus on niche areas such as vocational education and early learning.

For example, Navis Capital Partners acquired Guardian Early Learning Group from Wolseley Private Equity in 2013. In addition to pursuing domestic consolidation, the company is expected to expand into new markets.

Blue Sky Private Equity is a division of Blue Sky Alternative Investments, a listed alternative investment manager. Its portfolio includes one education business: Foundation Early Learning, which runs a network of childcare centers nationwide.

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Save this article  
• Send to  

• Topics
• Australasia
• Technology
• Consumer
• Expansion
• Blue Sky Private Equity
• Australia
• Technology
• Education
• Growth capital