Silver Knights Chess Academy
Silver Knights Chess Academy is a Kolkata-based private chess education business founded in 2012 by FIDE-rated master Sambarta Banerjee, delivering a four-level structured curriculum to beginner through FIDE-rated students via a capped-six online classroom and in-person coaching across 10+ countries.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2012
- HeadquartersKolkata, India
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Silver Knights Chess Academy does
Silver Knights Chess Academy (also operating as Silver Knights Chess Club) is a private, founder-owned chess education business headquartered in Kolkata, India, at 136 Netaji Colony, Baranagar. Founded in 2012 by Sambarta Banerjee - a FIDE-rated master (2067) and FIDE National Instructor with 15+ years of teaching experience - the company delivers structured chess instruction to beginner, intermediate, advanced, and FIDE-rated students. Its product line is a four-level progressive curriculum (Beginner 12-16 weeks; Intermediate 16-20 weeks; Advanced 20-24 weeks; Professional Coaching ongoing), capped at six students per class and priced via unpublished tiered offerings accessed after a free 30-minute demo session. Teaching is delivered both in-person at the Kolkata center and globally online via a digital classroom platform that hosts 200+ video lessons, puzzles, live interactive sessions, class recordings, weekly tournaments, and game analysis. The reported customer base is 500+ active students drawn from 10+ countries, acquired primarily through the website (SEO, blog content, testimonial-driven social proof) and converted via the demo funnel at a stated 95% rate.
The business is bootstrapped with no disclosed external funding, no institutional investors, and a five-person headcount spanning instruction, operations, and content. Revenue is recurring in nature (subscription-style course progression plus ongoing professional coaching) but is not publicly disclosed. Distribution is hybrid: a single physical location in Kolkata handles in-person learners, while the online classroom enables self-serve global access supported by direct inside-sales follow-up on demo and contact form submissions. There are no patent, API, SDK, integration, or AI/ML capability disclosures; the product surface is essentially an LMS-plus-live-instruction chess coaching service. Operational evidence indicates an active business (2026 copyright, current blog publishing, working demo booking) but no notable recent strategic moves beyond ongoing curriculum and platform maintenance.
Silver Knights Chess Academy firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Silver Knights Chess Academy
- Legal name
- Silver Knights Chess Club
- Website
- https://silverknightchess.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2012
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Silver Knights Chess Academy is a Kolkata-based private chess education business founded in 2012 by FIDE-rated master Sambarta Banerjee, delivering a four-level structured curriculum to beginner through FIDE-rated students via a capped-six online classroom and in-person coaching across 10+ countries.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Silver Knights Chess Academy is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Kolkata
- HQ country
- India
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices1 record
Markets served
Silver Knights Chess Academy business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Structured Chess Courses: Multi-week structured courses at four levels (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Professional Coaching) with ongoing enrollment. Revenue is recurring as students progress through levels or re-enroll.
- One-on-One Professional Coaching: Personalized professional coaching sessions for FIDE-rated players seeking tournament excellence. Customized training programs with ongoing engagement.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | One-time | Free Demo Session - 30-minute assessment and introduction to coaching methodology |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
Silver Knights Chess Academy product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Silver Knights Chess Academy delivers structured chess education and training through four progressive levels (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Professional) for students aged 6 and above. Instruction is delivered by FIDE-rated coaches led by founder Sambarta Banerjee (FIDE National Instructor, FIDE rating 2067), combining live human coaching with an online digital classroom platform offering video lessons and puzzles. The academy also offers a free 30-minute demo class as an entry point for prospective students.
Product overview
Silver Knights Chess Academy offers a four-level structured curriculum with courses from beginner to professional coaching, delivered through a unified digital learning platform plus in-person instruction. The core product line consists of the Beginner Chess Course (Level 1), Intermediate Chess Course (Level 2), Advanced Chess Course (Level 3), and Professional Coaching (Level 4), all supported by an Online Classroom Platform providing video lessons, puzzles, live sessions, practice tournaments, and game analysis. The academy also provides free demo sessions for prospective students to experience the teaching methodology.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Beginner Chess Course (Level 1) Foundational chess instruction designed for ages 6 and above, introducing the basics of chess in a structured, level-based format. Targeted at children and adult beginners with little or no prior chess experience.
- Intermediate Chess Course (Level 2) Second-tier chess instruction building on beginner foundations, focused on developing tactical awareness, calculation, and positional understanding. Targeted at learners who have completed beginner fundamentals and want to advance their game.
- Advanced Chess Course (Level 3) Advanced chess training covering complex tactics, opening theory, and strategic depth. Targeted at serious learners preparing for competitive play.
- Professional Chess Course (Level 4) Top-tier chess instruction aimed at grandmaster-level preparation and FIDE-rated player development. Targeted at competitive and aspiring tournament-level players seeking elite coaching.
- Online Chess Classroom Platform Digital learning platform that delivers Silver Knights chess instruction online, featuring video lessons and puzzles so students can learn chess remotely from any location.
- Free Demo Chess Class A complimentary 30-minute interactive chess class offered as a trial experience for prospective students and their families to evaluate the academy before purchasing a full course.
Quantifiable outcome
- 95% of demo students enroll in paid courses
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Silver Knights Chess Academy
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Silver Knights Chess Academy technology and API
TechnologyAPI detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Silver Knights Chess Academy partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators8 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Silver Knights Chess Academy competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Lichess: Lichess is a leading free, open-source chess platform with lessons, puzzles, analysis, and tournaments. It commoditizes the casual/beginner learning market that Silver Knights targets, putting pricing pressure on entry-level course offerings.
- Chess.com: Chess.com is the largest online chess platform globally, offering lessons, puzzles, coaches, and tournaments. It is the primary substitute for paid chess instruction and serves as the dominant ecosystem against which Silver Knights must position its personalized coaching offering.
- ChessBase: ChessBase is a leading chess software and database company providing training tools, opening encyclopedias, and analysis engines. Its products serve similar advanced/competitive student use cases and compete for spend on chess improvement tooling.
Direct peers
- Chessable: Chessable is a structured online chess courses platform focused on spaced-repetition learning for openings, tactics, and endgames. It overlaps with Silver Knights' digital classroom for self-serve curriculum delivery, though it lacks the live, small-group instruction piece.
- Magnus Chess Academy: Magnus Chess Academy, founded by Magnus Carlsen, sells online chess courses and live coaching by titled players. It directly competes for the same global audience of aspiring competitive chess students that Silver Knights targets.
Regional players
- Internet Chess Club (ICC): ICC is a longstanding online club for serious and titled chess players with instructors and lectures. It is comparable as a paid online chess community with structured coaching, though its primary audience is Western and Silver Knights is India-anchored.
Others
- International Chess Federation (FIDE): FIDE is the global governing body of chess and the credentialing authority for the FIDE National Instructor held by Silver Knights' lead coach. It is comparable as the institutional ecosystem around which academies position their certifications and rated-player development.
- Chess in Schools (US): Chess in Schools is a non-profit that brings chess education to schoolchildren. While non-commercial, it serves a similar youth chess education mission and represents a potential partnership/scale model for Silver Knights' school-delivered chess curriculum.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Silver Knights Chess Academy social profiles
Digital presenceSilver Knights Chess Academy compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Silver Knights Chess Academy financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Silver Knights Chess Academy leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Silver Knights Chess Academy funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Silver Knights Chess Academy M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Silver Knights Chess Academy
What does Silver Knights Chess Academy do?
Silver Knights Chess Academy delivers structured chess education and training through four progressive levels (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Professional) for students aged 6 and above. Instruction is delivered by FIDE-rated coaches led by founder Sambarta Banerjee (FIDE National Instructor, FIDE rating 2067), combining live human coaching with an online digital classroom platform offering video lessons and puzzles. The academy also offers a free 30-minute demo class as an entry point for prospective students.
Is Silver Knights Chess Academy a public or private company?
Silver Knights Chess Academy is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Silver Knights Chess Academy founded?
Silver Knights Chess Academy was founded in 2012. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Silver Knights Chess Academy based?
Silver Knights Chess Academy is headquartered in Kolkata, India, in the Asia region.
How does Silver Knights Chess Academy make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Structured Chess Courses are the primary driver. The others are one-on-One Professional Coaching.
Who are Silver Knights Chess Academy's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Lichess, Chess.com and ChessBase. Direct peers are Chessable and Magnus Chess Academy. Internet Chess Club (ICC) is listed as a regional player. Others are International Chess Federation (FIDE) and Chess in Schools (US).
Does Silver Knights Chess Academy have an API?
No public API is recorded for Silver Knights Chess Academy.