GEMS Education, led by former Eton headmaster Tony Little, announced the $1.25bn loan earlier this month, with financing directed from a group of major banking institutions.
According to a statement from GEMS, the investment offers the school provider “improved financial flexibility and resources” to further invest in providing a quality education for all students.
Dino Varkey, CEO of GEMS, also revealed that the organisation has invested in excess of $1bn in its network since 2014, with $340m of that invested in 2017 alone.
“This has been another year of continued reinvestment in our schools,” he said. “Over the last four years, we have invested well over $1 billion to build 16 new schools, upgrade our infrastructure, and develop our teachers’ capabilities across the board.”
With a network of over 70 schools across more than a dozen countries, GEMS already has a strong international presence including the World Academy Singapore which was opened in 2014 and International School Pearl City in Malaysia, which was opened the following year.
“Our commitment to improving the quality of education is central to GEMS Education, and the reason for investing back into the business,” continued Varkey.
“Our strong results, along with the refinancing we have just announced, will enable us to maintain our rigorous focus on delivering exceptional, quality education.”
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