Instructure Completes Acquisition of Parchment, the World's Largest Academic Credential Management Platform and Network

Rhea-AI Summary

Instructure Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: INST) has completed the acquisition of Parchment, the world's largest credential management platform and network. Parchment has over 13,000 customers and has exchanged more than 165 million credentials over two decades. This acquisition is expected to significantly expand Instructure's existing customer base and unlock exciting new growth opportunities. The addition of Parchment to the Instructure ecosystem enables customers to offer flexible lifelong learning experiences to non-traditional learners. The acquisition adds another key element to the Instructure ecosystem, providing a seamless way for learners to demonstrate skill mastery throughout their journey.

Positive

• Completed acquisition of Parchment, the world's largest credential management platform and network
• Expected expansion of customer base and new growth opportunities
• Enables offering of flexible lifelong learning experiences to non-traditional learners

Negative

• None.

Market Research Analyst

The acquisition of Parchment by Instructure represents a strategic move to consolidate its position in the educational technology market. By integrating Parchment's credential management capabilities, Instructure aims to enhance its existing services and tap into a broader customer base. This move is likely to create synergies by combining Instructure's learning management system with Parchment's credentialing platform, potentially leading to increased user engagement and customer loyalty.

From a market perspective, the expansion into credential management could open up new revenue streams for Instructure. Given Parchment's extensive network and the volume of credentials exchanged, this acquisition could position Instructure favorably within the growing market for digital certification and lifelong learning. The ability to track and verify educational achievements seamlessly is becoming increasingly important in the digital age and this acquisition could provide Instructure with a competitive edge.

Financial Analyst

Analyzing the financial implications of the acquisition, one must consider the potential for cost synergies and revenue enhancement. The consolidation of back-end operations and the cross-selling opportunities to existing customers are areas where Instructure might see financial benefits. However, the immediate financial impact will depend on the terms of the acquisition, the cost of integration and the speed at which the combined entity can realize these synergies.

For investors and stakeholders, this acquisition could be seen as a long-term investment in Instructure's growth. The move may result in short-term costs associated with the acquisition, but if executed effectively, it has the potential to increase Instructure's market share and strengthen its financial position in the long run. The market will be looking closely at subsequent earnings reports and user growth metrics to assess the success of this strategy.

Educational Technology Expert

The acquisition of Parchment by Instructure reflects a growing trend in the educational technology sector where companies are seeking to create comprehensive ecosystems that support learners throughout their educational journey. By offering a digital passport of achievement records, Instructure is addressing the need for portable and verifiable educational credentials, which is particularly relevant for non-traditional learners who may accumulate credits and skills from various institutions.

This move also highlights the importance of interoperability in educational technology platforms. As learners increasingly engage with multiple educational providers, the ability to seamlessly transfer credits and credentials is essential. This acquisition could serve as a benchmark for other companies in the industry, emphasizing the value of integrated solutions that support a learner's journey from K-12 through higher education and beyond into the workforce.

Expands Instructure's market-leading teaching and learning ecosystem by providing learners with a lifelong record of their journey

SALT LAKE CITY, Feb. 1, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Instructure Holdings, Inc. (Instructure) (NYSE: INST), the leading learning ecosystem and maker of Canvas, announced today it has completed the acquisition of Parchment, the world's largest credential management platform and network. Parchment has over 13,000 customers and has exchanged more than 165 million credentials over two decades. This acquisition is expected to significantly expand Instructure's existing customer base and unlock exciting new growth opportunities.

"The addition of Parchment to the Instructure ecosystem enables our customers to offer flexible lifelong learning experiences to meet the needs of the ever-growing sector of non-traditional learners," said Steve Daly, CEO of Instructure. "By providing a verifiable and comprehensive digital passport of achievement records and outcomes for learners, we'll be able to help our customers navigate skill mastery, transfer credits, provide proof of prior learning, and much more."

The acquisition of Parchment adds another key element to the Instructure ecosystem, which we believe will provide a seamless way for learners to demonstrate skill mastery throughout their journey.

About Instructure
Instructure (NYSE: INST) is an education technology company dedicated to elevating student success, amplifying the power of teaching, and inspiring everyone to learn together. Today the Instructure Learning Ecosystem, comprised of its flagship product Canvas LMS and several products serving K-12 and higher education, supports tens of millions of educators and learners around the world. Learn more at www.instructure.com.  

Forward-looking Statements
This press release contains "forward-looking" statements, which are subject to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements regarding expectations and benefits of the acquisition of Parchment, the combined company's growth, customer demand and application adoption, and business strategy.

These statements are not guarantees of future performance, but are based on management's expectations as of the date of this press release and assumptions that are inherently subject to uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements include the following: the ability to timely and successfully achieve the anticipated benefits and potential synergies of the acquisition of Parchment; the impact of the announcement of the closing of the transaction on our business, employees and suppliers, and on our investors and common stock; risks associated with the continued economic uncertainty, including high inflation, labor shortages, high interest rates, foreign currency exchange volatility, and reduced spending by customers; failure to continue our recent growth rates; the impact of the Israel-Hamas war on the macroeconomic and geopolitical environment and on our business; risks associated with future stimulus packages approved by the U.S. federal government; our ability to acquire new customers and successfully retain existing customers; the effects of increased usage of, or interruptions or performance problems associated with, our learning platform; the impact on our business and prospects from pandemics; our history of losses and expectation that we will not be profitable for the foreseeable future; the impact of adverse general and industry-specific economic and market conditions; failure to manage our growth effectively; and changes in the spending policies or budget priorities for government funding of Higher Education and K-12 institutions.

These and other important risk factors are described more fully in the Company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and other documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and could cause actual results to vary from expectations. All information provided in this press release is as of the date hereof, and Instructure undertakes no duty to update this information except as required by law.

Media Contact:
Brian Watkins
Corporate Communications
Instructure
(801) 658-7525
brian.watkins@instructure.com

Investor Contact:
April Scee
Managing Director
ICR, Inc.
917-497-8992
investors@instructure.com

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SOURCE Instructure

What is the ticker symbol for Instructure Holdings, Inc.?

The ticker symbol for Instructure Holdings, Inc. is INST.

What is the significance of the acquisition of Parchment for Instructure?

The acquisition is expected to significantly expand Instructure's existing customer base and unlock exciting new growth opportunities.

How many customers does Parchment have?

Parchment has over 13,000 customers.

What does the acquisition of Parchment enable Instructure's customers to offer?

The addition of Parchment to the Instructure ecosystem enables customers to offer flexible lifelong learning experiences to non-traditional learners.

What does the acquisition of Parchment add to the Instructure ecosystem?

The acquisition adds another key element to the Instructure ecosystem, providing a seamless way for learners to demonstrate skill mastery throughout their journey.