← Back to the club

ApplyBoard

EdtechCanada
New to Unitard
βœ‚οΈ Markdown
PeakΒ $3.2 BillionToday
~-74%
from peak
  1. πŸ¦„
    Became a unicorn
    2021
  2. πŸ“ˆ
    Peak valuation
    $3.2 Billion ’21
  3. πŸ’”
    Became a Unitard
    2024
  4. πŸ’Έ
    Last valuation
    ~$832M
Current status
Valuation cut ~74% to under $1B by 2024 as Canada capped international-student visas

The rise & fall

6 moments Β· 2015–2024

The key moments, with employee sentiment along the way.

2015
Founded in Waterloo
The Basiri brothers, once international students themselves, build a common app for studying abroad β€” schools pay the commissions.
Wikipedia
2021
The peak: a $3.2B Series D$3.2B
A $475M round backed by Ontario Teachers', Drive Capital and BDC makes it a unicorn β€” three times over β€” at the pandemic boom's height.
The PIE News
From the inside Β· Glassdoor reviews, 2022–24
Glassdoor reviews from the squeeze described repeated layoff rounds over roughly two years β€” a few tied to the visa clampdown β€” along with frequent restructuring, management churn, and Canadian roles shifting to lower-cost teams in India.
Jan 2024
Canada caps student visas
Ottawa clamps down on international-student permits β€” ApplyBoard's core market β€” and application volumes drop.
The PIE News
2024
Falls out of the club
The valuation drops roughly 74% to under $1B as the visa cap bites.
The PIE News
Today
Still private β€” the funds keep marking
Fidelity Canada Fund marks it at $2.92/share Β· as of Jul 2026
SEC NPORT-P

πŸ’¬ entries paraphrase anonymous, unverified reviews posted publicly on Glassdoor β†—; dated facts carry their source.

How it happened

ApplyBoard is a Canadian edtech platform that helps international students find and apply to colleges abroad, earning commissions from schools. Riding the pandemic-era boom, it raised a $475M Series D in 2021 that valued it at $3.2B, backed by Ontario Teachers' Venture Growth, Drive Capital and BDC.

Its fortunes turned when Canada β€” its core market β€” sharply capped international-student visas, cutting application volumes; by 2024 its valuation had fallen roughly 74% to under $1B.

Mutual-fund markdowns

1 fund Β· SEC NPORT-P

How U.S. mutual funds fair-value this still-private company in their quarterly SEC filings.

Per-share mark from peak
+0%
Fidelity Canada Fund Β· Common
$2.92 β†’ $2.92
as of Jul 2026

Source: SEC EDGAR Form NPORT-P (Level-3 fair-value marks). Per-share marks reflect the fund’s own valuation of a specific share class and aren’t a company-wide valuation. Last refreshed Oct 2026.

Source: The PIE News / Wikipedia / OPMwire (Canadian international-student recruitment platform backed by Ontario Teachers' Venture Growth, Drive Capital and BDC; reached a $3.2B valuation on a 2021 Series D that raised $475M; Canada's cap on international-student visas hit its business and its valuation fell ~74% to under $1B by 2024)

Founders

  • Martin Basiri
    Co-Founder & CEO (2015-2022)
    Now Founder & CEO at PassageLinkedIn β†—
  • Meti Basiri
    co-founder & CEO
    Still there β€” Co-Founder & CEOLinkedIn β†—
  • Massi Basiri
    co-founder & president
    Still there β€” Co-Founder & PresidentLinkedIn β†—

Current roles as self-reported on LinkedIn, retrieved 2026-08-19. See our methodology.

Disclosed investors (32)

Historical funding participation; lists may be incomplete and do not establish current ownership or investor losses.

* Lead in a funding round Β· Crunchbase β†— Β· 2026-10-13 Β· Methodology Β· Leaderboard

More from the club

Same sector Β· Edtech
Byju's$22BYuanfudao$15.5BChegg$14BGaotu Techedu$13BZuoyebang$10B
Same fate Β· down round / markdown
Mark43$1B
πŸ¦„