UTAH-BASED educational technology company Instructure, creator of learning management system (LMS) Canvas, has opened its Asian hub in Quezon City, looking to repeat a 100% market growth seen during the pandemic years.
The opening of a Philippine office is “central to Instructure’s global expansion, with Asia positioned as a primary growth market,” Instructure said in an Aug. 13 statement.
“We are establishing a formal presence in the Philippines to better serve the unique needs of our growing customer base,” Instructure Chief Executive Officer Steve Daly said in the statement.
The office at Bridgetowne in Ugong Norte, Quezon City opened on Aug. 12 and will have 200 posts in information technology, human resources, and marketing to back up a “24/7 support model,” according to Instructure.
Harrison Kelly, Instructure managing director for Asia Pacific, said Canvas had seen “double-digit growth” in Asia, with more institutions undergoing digital transformation.
“While Canvas entered the Asian market almost a decade ago, the education sector has matured significantly,” he said.
Kelly was quoted by GMA News as saying Instructure was eyeing another 100% market growth in the Philippines in 2025-2030.
Canvas clients and users doubled between 2020 to 2025 in the country, he said, without providing specific figures.
The Instructure statement said it had “millions of users across 19 countries in the region.”
UST, along with seven other Dominican-run schools, shifted to Canvas in Academic Year 2023-2024, after utilizing Blackboard which it first used in 2003.
Other top Philippine universities such as Ateneo de Manila University and De La Salle University have utilized Canvas as their learning management system since 2020 and 2019, respectively.
Instructure Holdings Inc. reported 12% growth in sales to $530 million in 2023.
Founded by graduate students from Salt Lake City’s Brigham Young University in 2008, Instructure rolled out Canvas in 2011 and went public in 2015.
In 2020, it was bought out by software-focused private equity firm Thoma Bravo for $2 billion. It raised funds and listed anew on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in 2021.
Last year, investment firm KKR bought Instructure for $4.8 billion or $23.60 per share and took the company out of the NYSE.
Despite a history of net losses, the outlook for Instructure is positive given its huge market and potential for growth outside of education and toward employer education and upskilling.
