Edtech firm upGrad has named Mukesh Mundra as its new chief financial officer (CFO), replacing Venkatesh Tarakkad, who held the position for almost two years after taking charge in March 2024.
A chartered accountant and certified financial analyst, Mundra brings over 26 years of experience across finance leadership roles in the media, telecom, manufacturing, and consumer sectors.
Mundra joins upGrad from JioStar, where he led the finance division. Before that, he spent more than eight years as CFO at Viacom18 Media. During the earlier stages of his career, he worked at companies including Idea Cellular, Grasim Industries, and the Anand Rathi Group.
In his new role, Mundra will lead upGrad's finance and administrative operations, overseeing financial planning, business collaboration, corporate governance, and supporting the company's expansion efforts as it advances its international growth.
"Mukesh's deep financial expertise and strong experience across large-scale consumer businesses make him a valuable addition to upGrad's leadership team. His strategic understanding of finance, governance, and business transformation will play a critical role as we continue scaling our global operations and strengthening our long-term growth roadmap," said Ronnie Screwvala, Co-founder and Chairperson of upGrad.
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The appointment comes at a time when upGrad is progressing towards the acquisition of Unacademy.
The proposed merger between the two firms has entered an advanced stage of regulatory review, with both companies submitting an application to the Competition Commission of India earlier this month.
The deal is likely to be carried out as a complete share-swap arrangement, with Unacademy set to be acquired at a significantly lower valuation compared with its peak valuation of $3.4 billion in 2021. Several reports estimate the current transaction value to be between about $218 million and $400 million.
Recently, Unacademy co-founder Sumit Jain, who serves as chief executive officer of the company's test preparation business, announced his departure from the edtech firm.
Edited by Megha Reddy