It appears as if 2022 is shaping up to be the year of the India startup. The country boasts the third largest startup ecosystem globally and is coming off a banner year in which the number of unicorns doubled.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared January 16 as National Startup Day while hailing them as the backbone of the country’s future. And it looks as if this is simply beginning.
“(Startups) are changing the rules of the game. I believe the golden era of India’s startups is starting now,” Modi was quoted as saying by The Economic Times. “The country is rapidly moving towards hitting a century of unicorns which are the hallmark of self-reliant and self-confident India.”
There are currently 60,000 startups in India with a recent report from Mumbai-based venture capital firm Orios Ventures finding 46 reached unicorn status in 2021. This brought the number of billion-dollar valued outfits in the country to 90, behind only the US and China.
The report added, “Indian unicorns are flourishing in this fast-paced and dynamic economy. These startups are not only developing innovative solutions and technologies but are generating large-scale employment. Today, one out of 13 unicorns globally was born in India.”
A total of 19 India startup unicorns have come out of the fintech sector with 15 being based in e-commerce and another 13 focused on SaaS. As far as funding goes, the report found that USD42 billion was raised in 2021, up from the USD11.5 billion collected a year earlier.
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India National Startup Day encourages the next wave
If 2022 is to be the year of the India startup, then there was no better way to kick it off than with the inaugural National Startup Day. For many firms, it was both acknowledgment from the government of their hard work and creativity and motivation to keep going.
“National Startup Day is a validation of the role of startups in the growth of country’s GDP and strengthening India’s position at a global stage. This initiative will not only make startups mainstream but also encourage young talent from seeing entrepreneurship as a primary career option,” Varun Saxena, Founder and CEO of Bolo Live, told The Economic Times.
The key will be continuing this momentum. With proper focus and support, the startup movement in India should be able to keep growing.
“We hope to see more focus on small and middle tier startups that will benefit greatly from the exposure and consideration. The startup market in India is not only booming but exactly at that precipice where this positive and supportive environment will propel growth in exponential numbers,” Pranav Dangi, founder and CEO of The Hosteller, stated.
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