Cakap Confirmed Centaur Status After the Series C Round from MDI Ventures and Heritas Capital

Jakarta, April 12 2023. Indonesia’s upskilling platform Cakap received fresh funding from MDI ventures and Heritas Capital. This series C1 funding has given Cakap a valuation of more than USD 100 million. “We are grateful for the investor’s trust in this series C1 round funding,” said Tomy Yunus, CEO & Co-Founder of Cakap. In the world of startups, companies with valuations between USD 100 million to USD 1 billion are called Centaurs, or one step below unicorns (USD 1-10 billion).

The invested funds will be used for business development towards blended learning (offline and online). “The dynamic learning behavior and methods of the community have prompted Cakap to always provide more relevant learning solutions in the post-pandemic and future eras. Cakap hopes to bridge the market demand with blended learning systems. With more options like blended learning, the community will be facilitated in choosing learning methods that are tailored to their interests and needs,” stated Tomy.

“We hope that the latest funding can further strengthen the synergy between Telkom Group as a whole and MDI specifically, together with Cakap which has been well established. One example is in the first quarter of this year, Cakap with Telkomcel, a communication provider from Timor Leste, has expanded learning to the state. Therefore, we hope that the latest funding will not only strengthen Cakap’s business but also generate a positive social impact on education in Indonesia,” said Donald Wihardja, CEO of MDI Ventures.

Meanwhile, Chik Wai Chiew, CEO & Executive Director of Heritas Capital, sees Cakap as an edtech leader in Indonesia, with the potential to expand and create impact across Southeast Asia. “Cakap has shown an excellent track record operationally and financially as a prominent upskilling platform in Indonesia. We look forward to Cakap’s continued strong execution in scaling its edtech solution and catalyze access to quality affordable lifelong learning opportunities for everyone in Indonesia and beyond,” said Wai Chiew.

Along with the increase in status to Centaur, Cakap has appointed Jonathan Dharmasoeka as Chief of Financial Officer (CFO) and Cecillia Ong as Chief Operating Officer (COO). Cakap is proud to recognize the commitment and achievement of Jonathan and Cecillia and look forward to their continued leadership and contribution to the company. In the midst of this challenging time, the latest funding will further strengthen Cakap’s business performance, both in language, upskilling, and business pillars. Cakap achieved positive EBITDA for three consecutive years, and to date Cakap has not carried out any efficiency measures such as downsizing. Instead, Cakap has been able to expand its ecosystem with a total number of students now exceeding three million.