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SaaS Education Company Destiny Solutions Acquired by Riverside

On Wednesday Cleveland-based private equity firm The Riverside Co. acquired Toronto-based Destiny Solutions for an undisclosed sum.

Founded in 1995, Destiny Solutions is a software as a service platform that manages and administers continuing education and non-degree programs for colleges and universities. Its client base includes over 50 higher education institutions with a particular focus on schools that serve non-traditional students.

According to the Destiny Solutions website, the company has partnerships with several internationally recognized institutions, including Penn State University, UC Berkeley Extension and Cornell University’s online initiative, eCornell. The company frequently offers it services to programs that cater to adults who are pursuing their studies in their free time while working full time or are interested in furthering their studies through non-degree and continuing education courses.

According to the company’s website, Destiny Solutions products are designed to facilitate customer lifecycle management, boost enrollment and retention rates and reduce costs.

The company got its start at the University of Toronto where team members built out the school’s website allowing students to browse courses, pay tuition and register online. The 1997 initiative made the University of Toronto the first postsecondary school in Canada to offer online enrollment.

The Riverside Co. is a global private equity firm with offices in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. It has a portfolio of over 80 companies valued at up to $400 million and was founded in 1988.

According to the company’s press release, the acquisition was made to answer “market [demand] for a way to efficiently manage a large and growing student population.” The firm also touted Destiny Solutions’ commitment to quality and efficacy as two strong factors which encouraged customer loyalty and interest in the deal.

The Riverside Co. team has conducted previous business in the Education, Training, Software and IT sectors, all experiences that company officials plan to build on with this latest venture. The firm plans to invest in sales and marketing capabilities, product functionality and expanding offerings to a larger international user base.