DECEMBER 202019The Indian startup eco-system has evolved over the last decade to become the third largest in the world after U.S. and China. Owing to widespread penetration of internet, lowering data costs and adoption of smart devices, consumer internet companies been on an upward growth trajectory. Not only have these companies revolutionized the way we live our lives but have also been instrumental in upping the Indian startup eco-system's game. The vitality of these companies and the services they provide has never been more crucial than in 2020. As the global pandemic set in during the first quarter of 2020, most of us were confined within the four walls of our abodes. While the pandemic sounded a death knell for most offline businesses, the entire action shifted online. As families were compelled to stay together, it was the younger lot that brought the older generation up to speed with digital trends. With people being compelled to stay indoors, reliance on digital avenues for self-reliance saw massive increase. Sectors such as edtech, fintech, healthtech, everyday essentials, gaming, biotech, OTT, IoT etc saw maximum activity with newer players entering the field and existing players sharpening their digital arsenal. Although investor activity remained low for the first half of the year, with the lifting of the lockdown, the vigor amongst investors also came back. According to reports, the Indian startups raised a total disclosed funding of $8.4 billion between January 2020 and mid-November 2020, a 30 percent decline in comparison to the same time period in 2019. Total number of deals also fell 14.5 percent with the eco-system registering 765 deals between January 2020 and November 15, 2020. However, investor sentiment remained positive. As the year comes to a draw, the Indian startup landscape has witnessed massive recovery. Infact, the year saw nine new Unicorns emerge. In fact, Nykaa, Postman, Razorpay, Zerodha, Unacademy and Cars 24 joined the prestigious Unicorn club after July.This recovery has come as result of the swift intervention undertaken by startups as they resorted to cost optimization and product diversification as short term strategies while they moved focus on deeptech, expansion to new verticals to remain sturdy in the long run. The key to sustaining growth in the time to come will be operational excellence and portfolio diversification. The landscape has been and will be rewarding for `digital first' models and `make in India' firms. As keen observers of the Indian startup landscape, StartupCity presents to you the `Startup of the Year 2020' edition. This issue features a plethora of young movers and shakers that have not only survived but flourished through these rough times. Chosen by an accomplished panel including CEOs, CXOs, industry experts and StartupCity editorial board, these young firms have created a splash in their respective industries and are at the forefront of the Digital India that we have all envisioned.
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