Why

destination to invest in

The Indian startup scene is abuzz with activity. Since 2010, the country has witnessed an exponential growth in the number of startups and investment into them. Founders of Indian startups have succeeded in raising capital to the tune of $4.9 billion in 2015, a 125 per cent increase over the preceding year. Home to over 4,200 startups, India has emerged as the third largest startup base globally, behind only the US and the UK. Moreover, there is the promise of more growth in 2016 and beyond. India is set to become, quite simply, the darling of investors into startups.

The reasons for this are manifold. The startup ecosystem in the country is seeing evolution at an unprecedented rate. Driving this are factors such as technological improvements, massive domestic market potential, substantial funding and ongoing consolidation. Further, the central government, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has rolled out the 'Startup India' initiative which aims at providing funds and handholding, process simplification, incubation and industry-academia partnerships to new ventures. This is complemented by initiatives set up by various state governments to foster entrepreneurship such as 'Startup Village' in Kerala. Apart from this, organizations such as NASSCOM and iSpirit have come forward with initiatives such as '10,000 Startups' which are aimed at incubating, funding and providing support to Indian technology startups. The story doesn't end there. The RBI too has relaxed its norms with regard to the ease of doing business in the country, particularly in connection with startups.

Given such a climate, it is not surprising that the Indian startup landscape witnessed a 100% growth in the number of venture capitalists, angel investors and private equity in 2015. Also, eight out of the top ten investors in the arena are foreign investors such as Sequoia Capital, SoftBank, Tiger Global Management (TGM) and Accel Partners. Also betting on the potential that mobile technology holds in India are Chinese investors such as InCapital and Grand Capital. These are indications that Indian startups are becoming increasingly attractive for investors, and for good reason.

With the macro environment looking positive, the growth of internet and mobile phone penetration in the country and the government kick-starting the reform process, the future is indeed looking bright for Indian startups and those who choose to invest in them.