A total of 920 venture capital (VC) funding deals were announced in India during January-October 2023, registering a decline of 38.6 per cent in comparison to the 1499 VC deals announced during the January-October 2022, said a report by GlobalData. The corresponding VC funding value plummeted by 67.1 per cent from $19.2 billion during January-October 2022 to $6.3 billion during January-October 2023, the data and analytics company said.
Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, said, “2023 so far has been a challenging year for Indian startups seeking to secure VC funding as investors go slow on deals with growing concerns around several homegrown startups such as Byjus. The massive fall in funding value indicates that VC firms are cutting down on big investments and raising capital in the current scenario is not easy for startups.”
Nevertheless, India continues to rank among the top five markets for VC funding activity globally, accounting for 5.4 per cent of the total number of VC funding deals announced globally during the January-October 2023 period. Also, its share of the corresponding disclosed deal value stood at 3.1 per cent. India is also a key APAC market and stands just next to China in terms of both VC funding deal volume and value.
An analysis of GlobalData’s Financial Deals Database revealed that despite the dampened investor sentiments, India managed to see the announcement of some VC funding rounds worth more than $100 million in 2023. Some of the notable VC funding deals announced in India during January-October 2023 include $250 million fundraising by PhysicsWallah, $229 million worth of funding raised by Perfios Software Solutions, $200 million fundraising by PhonePe, $200 million worth of funding raised by Zepto, and $120 million worth funding raised by Zetwerk.
“The ability to secure noteworthy funding rounds exceeding $100 million signals a resilient entrepreneurial spirit, showcasing the enduring attractiveness of India’s startup ecosystem, even amid cautious investor sentiment,” concluded Aurojyoti Bose.