Leeds Equity Partners, the private equity firm dedicated exclusively to investing in the Knowledge Industries, and Genius SIS LLC (“Genius” or the “Company”), announced today that Leeds Equity has made a significant investment in Genius.
Leeds Equity seeks to invest in leading companies in sectors across the Knowledge Industries where the firm can partner with management to drive innovation, business growth and best-in-class customer outcomes.
Genius represents the third platform company for Leeds Equity Partners VII, L.P., its new investment vehicle with over $1 billion in committed capital, and builds upon the firm’s over two-decade track record of investing in education software companies. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
“Across the entire education market, institutions of learning increasingly require administrative software solutions that enable them more effectively to offer virtual educational programs that are tailored to the individual needs of students and families,” said Jacques Galante, Partner at Leeds Equity Partners. “With our significant investment, we are excited to work closely with Beny Lederman and the Genius team to build upon their great success and to drive further innovation and improved educational offerings and outcomes.”
“Since first meeting with Leeds Equity many years ago, I have gained a strong appreciation for the firm’s deep sector expertise in education and software, and believe they are the right partner to help steward Genius’ next stage of growth,” said Beny Lederman, Founder and CEO of Genius. “The team at Leeds Equity brings a compelling balance of strategic vision, capital and collaborative spirit that will be critical in enabling Genius to better serve our clients in a rapidly evolving digital instruction environment.”
“Genius’s software helps drive stronger faculty and student engagement and, thus, better learner outcomes,” said David Neverson, Principal at Leeds Equity Partners. “Through greater investment and resources, our partnership with Genius will better position the Company to capitalize on new market opportunities and enhance student, faculty and administrator experiences.” Reed Smith LLP served as legal counsel to Leeds Equity Partners.
Leeds Equity Partners is a private equity firm dedicated exclusively to partnering with management teams in the education, training and information services industries (the “Knowledge Industries”). The firm was founded in 1993 and has managed over $3.5 billion of capital across a broad spectrum of companies within the Knowledge Industries. Leeds Equity seeks to leverage its sector-focused expertise and market insights to create long-term value for its partner companies.
Genius is a software company offering cloud-based Student Information System (SIS) software and Training Management System (TMS) software for online learning and virtual classrooms. Genius provides user-friendly, intuitive solutions to manage registration, e-commerce, tracking and real-time reporting systems for schools, colleges, corporations and government entities who need to provide online education for their users.