The startup funding graph has been trending downwards lately. The latest figures show that funding is down 80.1% year-over-year. In the week from July 20 to 26, startups raised just $58.3 million. This contrasts with the $293 million raised in the same period in 2023. The previous week’s total was $210.4 million. This represents a 72.3% decrease.
The sharp drop in fundraising signals a major shift in the investment environment. Fundraising was concentrated in just eight rounds this week, compared to 28 in the same week in 2023. The drop signals a tightening of investor sentiment, which reflects a cautious attitude toward new investments.
One of the few bright spots was space startup Unimech Aerospace, which raised $30 million in a funding round, but this still accounted for more than 50% of the total funding raised that week. The round was led by Steadview Capital, ValueQuest Scale Fund, and Evolvence India.
Wealthtech startup Stable Money secured around $15 million in a Series A round led by RTP Capital this week. Other investors included Lightspeed India and Matrix Partners. Flexible workspace provider IncasPays also secured $8 million simultaneously in its first funding round led by India Inflection Opportunity Fund. Direct-to-consumer luggage brand Nashaa Miles raised $4 million in a bridge round backed primarily by Singularity Early Opportunity Fund, SoftBank Vision Fund’s Narendra Rathi and Goldman Sachs Growth Equity’s Sourav Arya.
This significant decline highlights the challenges they currently face with regards to the investment environment. While sectors such as space tech and wealthtech continue to attract investor interest, the overall funding environment has seen a dramatic decline in the number of investment rounds. This is the new reality for Indian startups, and it looks like the tough funding environment may continue for some time to come.
