• Egypt-based edtech OTO has raised $400,000 in cash and in-kind services from corporate VC firm EdVentures to enhance distance learning methods in Egypt and the Arab world.

• Founded in 2015 by Ahmed Badr and Tarek Nour, OTO’s online learning platform provides learners the flexibility to choose session dates that suit them, with the opportunity to communicate directly with lecturers.

• The investment will be used to develop the company's platform and further expand its services to include a larger segment of users, especially middle and secondary school students by delivering educational programmes in a variety of areas/subjects.

• Launched in 2017 by Nahdet Misr Publishing House, EdVentures supports and invests in startups specialising in education, culture and innovative learning solutions in Seed and pre-Series A rounds focusing on Egypt and Mena.

Press release:

In an attempt to enhance distance learning methods and support startups in Egypt and the Arab world; EdVentures announced that it has invested $400,000 in cash and in-kind services in OTO. The goal of this investment is to develop the company's platform and further expand its services to include a larger segment of users, especially middle and secondary school students by delivering educational programmes in a variety of areas/subjects. This, in turn, will reflect on the educational experience that the students get.

Founded in 2015 by Ahmed Badr and Tarek Nour, OTO aims to bridge the gap between traditional education and what the market needs by providing distant educational services through its electronic platform. This gives the learners great flexibility to choose the session dates that suit them, with the opportunity to communicate directly with the lecturers.

OTO started its activity by offering English language courses and, since its launch, it delivered 350,000 hours online to more than 15,000 learners, and has more than 150 teachers/lecturers. 

“We are delighted to continue our support for OTO, which has proven its success over the years. Its founders have succeeded in regularly upgrading the platform in order to improve the effectiveness of its services. Our investment comes today to assist OTO in extending the provision of high-quality distance learning services to thousands of learners.” said Dalia Ibrahim, CEO and Founder of EdVentures, regarding this investment.

The co-founder and CEO of OTO Courses, Tarek Nour El-Din, said: “We, at OTO, seek to be a leading platform for online learning in Egypt and the Middle East, and to provide high quality services and avail them to everyone.”

According to Ahmed Badr, the co-founder and CCO of OTO, the company aspires to play a key role in educating children and youth in the Arab world through the provision of the latest edtech. “We will continue offering high quality services at the most affordable rates to our users so all segments can benefit from our platform,” Badr added.

EdVentures supports and invests in startups specialising in education, culture and innovative learning solutions in Seed and pre-Series A rounds focusing on Egypt, Africa, and the Arab World. The corporate VC was launched in 2017 by Nahdet Misr Publishing House. It provides technical and financial support to startups in order to ensure success and continuity in the market by providing investment according to the needs and maturity level of each company.