ALLEN Digital CEO Abha Maheshwari Resigns

Abha Maheshwari, the chief executive officer of ALLEN Digital, has stepped down after over two years in the role.

Taking to LinkedIn, Maheshwari announced that she is stepping down from her current role at the edtech company and will take a pause before joining her next assignment. 

“After two unforgettable years, I’m moving on from ALLEN, closing an incredible chapter filled with learning, growth and impact,” the former Meta executive’s post read. 

Maheshwari joined ALLEN from Meta in 2023, where she was heading its product and payments business. She spent nearly 10 years with the Meta group, working for its Facebook and Instagram platforms in various leadership roles. 

In her 20-year-long career, Maheshwari had also worked with Cadence Design Systems and Magma Design Automation. 

Founded in 1988 by Rajesh Maheshwari, ALLEN Career Institute ventured into building digital-first and online programmes in 2022. Maheshwari played a key role in building the company’s tech team in Bengaluru. 

The online-offline learning institute offers various courses where students from 11th and 12th grade can prepare for JEE and NEET exams. Additionally, it offers learning courses to students studying in lower classes. 

The institute has physical centres and also offers distance learning and online courses to students. It claims to have mentored over 30 Lakh students and has a strong faculty team of over 7 Lakh. 

To strengthen its online and digital footing, the institute turned to inorganic route. In 2023, the year Maheshwari joined ALLEN, it acquired online doubt resolution platform Doubtnut in an undisclosed deal. Last year, it was also in talks to acquire Gaurav Munjal-led edtech startup Unacademy at a valuation of $800 Mn. But the deal could not get through due to valuation issues. 

The Edtech Space: A Rise From The Fall? 

The year 2024 was not a promising one for the edtech space. BYJU’s, which was once valued at $22 Bn and had the tag of being the highest valued edtech in the world, collapsed. The unicorn went into insolvency, and it is unlikely to see a comeback. However, the founder Byju Raveendran promises a strong comeback.

On the other hand, Unacedemy seems to have lost its main strength with its online offerings, which saw a decline in FY24, while the offline courses grew by 30%. Its founder Gaurav Munjal also stepped down from his role to build Airlearn. 

But all is not gloomy for the sector. 

PhysicsWalls has shown some resistance in the space as it prepares for its INR 4,000 Cr public listing and is on its way to become the first edtech to get listed on the bourse.