IFC Announces US$9.8 Million Co-Investment in Lottus Education Along with Alta Growth Capital

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), member of the World Bank Group, announced a co-investment of US$9.8 million in Lottus Education, a leading higher education group with a diversified portfolio of universities in México, along with Alta Growth Capital, a Private Equity Fund oriented to the development of middle-market companies and existing shareholder of Lottus Education.

 The co-investment will contribute to the objective of improving the quality of education in México, where 31 percent of businesses identify inadequately educated workforce as a major constraint. Founded in 2015, Lottus Education provides quality education to low and middle-income students through its three assets for more than 45,000 students: Universidad Tres Culturas (UTC), Universidad Latinoamericana (ULA) and Colegio Indoamericano.

IFC's investment alongside Alta Growth Capital and existing Lottus Education investors will help Lottus Education to make strategic purchases in the sector as well as expanding its territorial coverage and adding more than 30,000 students to its portfolio. IFC will also support Lottus Education through the Digital For Tertiary Education Program (D4TEP), a program created with Deloitte Consulting to help universities in the development, implementation and financing of their digital transformation. This investment will have a direct impact for the technological evolution of Lottus Education and the digital journey of its students.

 Mario Gonzalez, CFO of Lottus Education, said: "Our mission and obsession is to revolutionize the sector by fostering the access to good education and through the assurance of high-quality employment to our students. This is a terrific milestone for Lottus Education. IFC will contribute with resources to accelerate the digital transformation of our group. This investment also demonstrates the strong support of the international investment community in the education sector. We are thrilled to join forces with the IFC and get Alta's continuous support on this journey."

 Elena Sterlin, IFC's Senior Manager for Global Health and Education, stated: "Lottus Education accomplishes its quality standards and breadth of curriculum at a remarkably low cost to its students: tuition rates at its schools are 30-50 percent below rates of competitors. Such low tuition rates make education more accessible for low and low-middle income students in a country where only two percent of students from the poorest quintile are enrolled in tertiary institutions".

 Erik Carlberg, Managing Director of Alta Growth Capital, highlighted, "Even with the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, Lottus's management team redoubled efforts to support the student experience through an improved virtual platform and is still expanding its education platform through strategic acquisitions. We are very excited about this follow-on investment and eager to continue supporting Lottus Education on its spectacular growth path."

Demand for education is soaring. The number of higher education students is projected to more than double by 2025. Most of this growth will come from the emerging markets. Meanwhile, youth unemployment continues to grow globally, even as employers report difficulty in finding workers with the right skills. IFC is strongly committed to increasing the access of the most vulnerable sectors to high quality education.

August 06, 2021