BENGALURU: The Indian start-up ecosystem, the third largest in the world, is on the threshold of the next wave of growth, according to IT industry body Nasscom. The IT body also said that the start-up ecosystem saw 108 per cent growth in funding in 2018. Funding in 2018 was $4.3 billion as against $2 billion in 2017.
According to a study titled ‘The Indian Start-up Ecosystem-Approaching Escape Velocity’, jointly done by Nasscom and Zinnov, the top five deals accounted for approximately 50 per cent of the total funding during the year.
The total number of start-up funding deals, especially in the late stages (Series C, D, E, F), witnessed a massive growth of around 250 per cent, from $847 million in 2017 to $3.0 billion in 2018. The year also saw an addition of eight unicorns in the country—the highest in a single calendar year.
“After a brief slowdown witnessed in 2016-17, we are now witnessing an influx of investors, which is making the country a place of unprecedented opportunities for global and domestic businesses,” said Debjani Ghosh.