Zepto was solely responsible for pushing Mumbai to the top spot for the total funding amount
The two largest deals for Bengaluru came from enterprise tech startup iBus and Rapido, both of which raised $200 Mn this past year
Total funding for Delhi NCR startups decreased by 15% on a yearly basis, the deal count increased by 5%
After several years of leading the way when it comes to startup funding in India, Bengaluru lost the top spot to Mumbai in 2024, primarily driven by the $1.3 Bn fundraise for quick commerce unicorn Zepto. Overall, Mumbai startups raised $3.7 Bn in funding in 2024.
While Bengaluru and Delhi NCR led when it came to the number of deals in 2024, Zepto was solely responsible for pushing Mumbai to the top spot for the total funding amount. Overall, Indian tech startups raised over $12 Bn this year across 993 deals.
According to Inc42’s ‘India Tech Startup Funding Report 2024’, the funding for Mumbai startups was 147% higher in 2024, as compared to 2023. Startups in the city were part of 175 funding deals, which was a 9% growth in the number of deals.
Founded by Aadit Palicha and Kaivalya Vohra in 2021, Zepto raised multiple mega deals this year, bagging a total of over $1.3 Bn over three separate rounds.
After raising $665 Mn in June, the quick commerce giant raised $340 Mn in August and an additional $350 Mn in November, and pushed Mumbai past the two other primary hubs.
Startup Funding In 2024: Mumbai On Top
Even though Zepto relocated its headquarters from Mumbai to Bengaluru in August this year, our analysis was based on the start of the year when the company was still based in Mumbai.
With Zepto’s fundraise, late-stage funding in Mumbai zoomed 206% year-on-year (YoY) to $3 Bn in 2024. Moving on, seed-stage investments grew 21% YoY to $137 Mn in 70 deals and growth-stage funding increased 28% to $472 Mn in 2024.
Overall, as per Inc42 data from 2014, startups from Mumbai have seen a total capital infusion of over $22 Bn across 1,994 deals.
In addition to Zepto, the spike in funding for Mumbai in 2024 can also be attributed to Rebel Foods’ $210 Mn round led by Temasek and Evolvence India.
Bengaluru Scores The Most Number Of Deals
If we omit Zepto from the Mumbai equation, Bengaluru is the clear winner at $3.4 Bn. Last year, India’s Silicon Valley raised $4.2 Bn in total startup funding.
Despite a 19% decline in funding amount to $3.4 Bn, Bengaluru saw more funding deals materialise this year. The city saw a total of 285 deals this year, up 14% from the 249 deals in 2023. The city retained its position as India’s innovation capital, with enterprise tech leading at a sectoral level with about 49 deals.
With this, Bengaluru reaffirmed its leading Indian startup hub in terms of funding. Since 2014, Bengaluru-based startups have raised the highest $72 Bn.
The two largest deals for Bengaluru came from enterprise tech startup iBus and Rapido, both of which raised $200 Mn this past year. Rapido entered the unicorn club with this funding round, which saw participation from WestBridge Capital, Nexus Venture Partners, Think Investments and Invus Opportunities.
Besides these two large rounds, Eruditus and Pharmeasy were also part of the mega deals list for 2024, and added to Bengaluru’s deal volume
Delhi NCR Sees Spike In Deal Count
Delhi NCR secured $2.3 Bn across 252 deals in 2024. While total funding decreased by 15% on a yearly basis, the deal count increased by 5%.
The region demonstrated particular strength in early and growth stages, with seed funding growing 37% to $155 Mn and growth stage funding increasing 31% to $1 Bn.
Among Delhi NCR startups, PhysicsWallah was the startup that raised the largest round, with its $210 Mn round, largely believed to be a pre-IPO round.
OYO and Healthkart were the other big contributors to the tally for Delhi NCR
The IPO Race: Delhi Outpaces Bengaluru
Despite trailing behind the other two top startup hubs in terms of funding trends, the national capital’s startup ecosystem has contributed more to the startup IPO space.
According to Inc42 analysis, 15 new-age tech companies from Delhi NCR are listed on the two stock exchanges, accounting for 43% of the 35 new-age listed companies under Inc42’s coverage.
Delhi NCR-based listed startups include Zomato, Paytm, TBO Tek, Delhivery, Honasa Consumer among others. Having said that, the biggest IPO of 2024 came from Bengaluru-based Swiggy, while Unicommerce and MobiKwik among the bigger new-age IPOs of 2024 from Delhi NCR.
While the traditional trio of Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi NCR remained at the forefront of startup funding, both in terms of amount and deal count, Hyderabad, Pune, and Chennai led the race as emerging startup hubs in 2024.
Hyderabad took the top spot with over 384 deals secured since 2014, while Pune and Chennai followed closely with 382 and 379 deals, respectively. Interestingly, Pune and Chennai outperformed Hyderabad in total funding, each attracting over $4.7 Bn compared to Hyderabad’s $3 Bn+ during the same period.
