India has three states – Bengaluru, Delhi and Mumbai – in the top 40 rankings of the Global Startup Ecosystem Report (GSER) 2024.
The GSER is created in partnership with the Global Entrepreneurship Network, Dealroom, Crunchbase, and Bella Private Markets.
Bengaluru, ranked 21st (tied with Sydney), has created $158 billion in ecosystem value between July 01, 2021, to December 31, 2023.
Ecosystem value is a measure of economic impact, calculated as the value of exits and startup valuations.
Delhi is ranked 24th and Mumbai at 37th. However, Mumbai experienced a rankings decline this year, falling six spots.
In Asian rankings, Bengaluru is placed at 6th, Delhi at 7th, Mumbai at 10th, Chennai at 18th, Hyderabad at 19th and Pune at 26th.
Bengaluru: A beacon for startups
“The Government of Karnataka is committed to making Bengaluru the best place for founders to start and scale their businesses through conducive policies by the state government,” Dr Ekroop Caur
I.A.S, Secretary to Government, Department of Electronics Information Technology Biotechnology and Science & Technology at Government of Karnataka, said.
Bengaluru is a beacon for startups, producing the most unicorns in India, with success stories including Flipkart, Zerodha, Cred, PhonePe, Flipkart, Big Basket and Swiggy. Global innovation thrives here, with many Fortune 500 companies operating R&D and Global Capability Centres.
The infrastructure is bolstered by government support, with policies to encourage IT growth, making Bangalore a central node in the global tech landscape.
Total early-stage funding in Bengaluru between July 01, 2021, to December 31, 2023, stood at $3.8 billion while creating 33 unicorns.
In 2021, Mumbai’s seven large exits were 6th among Asian ecosystems; however, in 2022, this number dropped to three, and in 2023, zero.
Unfortunately, early-stage deals have followed a similar trajectory. While Mumbai startups secured 31 Series A deals in 2021, 9th among Asian ecosystems, there were just 11 deals in 2023, tied for 17th.
“Mumbai still has many strengths it can leverage. Because of its market size, B2C startups that achieve product-market fit have tremendous scaling opportunities,” the report stated.