IDP to acquire British Council and its allied English testing services

The hottest bulletin for the month is the million-dollar sale of one of the most coveted English proficiency tests. Yes, you heard it right! British Councils' prestigious IELTS operation is being sold to IDP.

The Australian giants have taken over the IELTS operation in India which was earlier handled by the British Council for a staggering 130 million.

The IDP Education Limited is an Australian-based international education service provider facilitating optimum solutions to the international student community in major English-speaking countries.

Glossary:

• Came into existence in 1969 as the Australian Asian Universities Cooperation Scheme (AAUCS), later changed its name to the International Development Program (IDP) as an affiliate scheme of Australian Universities and Colleges and schools / Education Australia.
• 2006 IDP laid off 50% shares to SEEK.
• IDP In 2015 became a public-listed company when SEEK sold 50% of its shares to the general public.
• In 2017, IDP acquired Hotcourses, a UK education-based listing company for 30 million.
• IDP issued new shares worth AU$175 million in April 2020. In June 2020 and March 2021, the company sold 5% and 15% respectively to the public. Proclaiming that the remaining 25% would be bifurcated to its affiliate universities (38 Australian colleges approx.). 

The ILETS or International English Language Testing System is one of the widely acclaimed English language proficiency tests around the world. And, British Council - INDIA sat at the epitome of providing IELTS to the Indian plethora. 

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The band score of IELTS is generally taken to gauge a candidate's linguistic proficiency as a base for international universities and destinations for permanent settlement.

In India, this exam is controlled by the British Council and IDP Educations. But in the recent news amid the covid progression, British Council announced that they're winding up their India operations and IDP is currently the reported sole provider of IELTS, acquiring 100% shares of British Council India's IELTS business.

Shashwat Patel, Counsel & Head of the India group for UK corporate, said - "Through this significant deal Indian perspective given its sheer size and scale reflects the continued interest that India offers to the global citizen. The domain is also particularly exciting."

The deal has been finalized to conclude at 130mn on a debt free - cash free basis. Subsequently, the British Council staffing would also go to IDP as soon as the contract is completed. All formalities are said to conjure by August 2021.

This acquisition would further bring clarity to the Indian audience consisting of aspiring immigrants and students alike. Plus, there will be zero interruption of services during the transfer. The aspirants are advised to pursue their preparation in the meantime.