{"id":18,"date":"2025-09-05T20:14:31","date_gmt":"2025-09-05T19:14:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/odrindia.in\/startups\/?p=18"},"modified":"2025-09-05T20:14:31","modified_gmt":"2025-09-05T19:14:31","slug":"startups-journey-in-india-from-2019-to-september-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/odrindia.in\/startups\/2025\/09\/05\/startups-journey-in-india-from-2019-to-september-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Startups Journey In India From 2019 To September 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Startup ecosystem of India is many decades old and it dates back to 1990 when the entrepreneurship journey of India in the modern era started. It gained significant momentum around 2014-2016. The Indian government’s launch of the Startup India initiative in 2016 is a landmark event that officially kickstarted the focused development of the country’s startup culture. That is why we are taking 2019 as the base year for the limited purpose of this article. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Early Beginnings (1990s\u2013Early 2000s)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The rise of information technology (IT) service giants like Infosys, Wipro, and TCS in the 1990s created the foundation and infrastructure for a tech-based economy.\nThe dot-com boom of the early 2000s, with pioneers like MakeMyTrip (2000) and Naukri.com (1997), introduced the concept of online business to India. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

E-Commerce Boom (2007\u20132012)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The founding of Flipkart in 2007 is widely regarded as a watershed moment for the Indian consumer internet and e-commerce space, inspiring a new wave of entrepreneurs.\nOther major players like Zomato (2008), Ola (2010), and Paytm (2010) emerged during this period, fueled by increased internet penetration and smartphone adoption.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Exponential Growth And Government Support (2014\u2013Present)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

(a) The Tipping Point (Around 2014):<\/strong> A major turning point occurred around 2014 as the ecosystem experienced a surge in entrepreneurial activity, supported by increased access to capital, a growing talent pool, and a cultural mindset shift toward entrepreneurship. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(b) The Startup India Initiative (2016):<\/strong> Launched on January 16, 2016, this government initiative is a key driver of the modern startup ecosystem. It provided a suite of measures and policy support, including tax exemptions and a fund-of-funds scheme, to accelerate growth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(c) Rapid Expansion:<\/strong> Since 2016, the number of government-recognized startups has grown exponentially, from just a few hundred to more than 159,000 by early 2025. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(d) Creation Of Unicorns:<\/strong> The number of unicorn startups (valued at over $1 billion) also surged, making India the third-largest ecosystem for unicorns in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Indian Startup Era From 2019 To September 2025<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The following is a summary of available data on Indian startups founded since 2019 as of September 2025. The exact figures vary by source, as there is no single central registry for all startups\u2014data is primarily from the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) for recognised startups (a subset of all startups that apply for government recognition and benefits) and Tracxn (a private database that tracks company formations and shutdowns). DPIIT recognition is a good proxy for newer startups, as eligibility requires the company to be less than 10 years old, and recognition often happens soon after founding. Tracxn data is based on founded date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Number Of Startups Founded In India Since 2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

(a) According to Tracxn, approximately 83,277 startups were founded in India in the last 5 years (2020\u20132024).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(b) Using DPIIT data as a proxy (new recognitions since 2019):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(i) Cumulative recognised startups as of July 2025: 180,683 (since program start in 2016).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(ii) Cumulative as of December 2019: 23,657.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(iii) New recognitions from 2020 to July 2025: 180,683 – 23,657 = 157,026<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(iv) Adding an estimate for new recognitions in August\u2013September 2025 (based on 2025’s average monthly rate of ~3,600): approximately 160,000\u2013162,000<\/strong> startups founded since 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Year<\/th>New DPIIT RecogniSed Startups (Approximate)<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
2019<\/td>~14,000\u201315,000 (estimated based on growth trends from 23,157 new in 2017\u20132019 total)<\/td><\/tr>
2020<\/td>~20,343 (from end 2019 to end 2020: 44,000 – 23,657)<\/td><\/tr>
2021<\/td>~16,287 (from end 2020 to end 2021: 60,287 – 44,000)<\/td><\/tr>
2022<\/td>~26,000<\/td><\/tr>
2023<\/td>~30,967 (from end 2022 ~86,287 to end 2023 117,254)<\/td><\/tr>
2024<\/td>~40,452 (from end 2023 117,254 to end 2024 157,706)<\/td><\/tr>
2025 (up to July)<\/td>22,977 (from end 2024 157,706 to July 2025 180,683)<\/td><\/tr>
Total since 2019<\/strong><\/td>~171,026<\/strong> (up to July; ~174,000 estimated to September)<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Number Of Startups That Ceased Operations<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startups that have ceased operations (shut down).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(a) As per Ministry of Corporate Affairs data (via DPIIT): 6,019 recognised startups have shut down as of July 2025 (total ever since 2016, not limited to those founded since 2019).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(b) As per Tracxn and related reports (likely more comprehensive, including non-recognised startups):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(i) Total shutdowns since 2019: ~31,197.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(ii) Breakdown: 2,300 (2019\u20132022), 15,921 (2023), 12,717 (2024), ~259+ (2025 up to mid-year, estimated to rise to 500\u20131,000 by September).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(iii) Reasons for closures include funding shortages, regulatory hurdles, unsustainable models, and post-pandemic market shifts (e.g., in edtech, fintech, and healthtech).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most closures (over 90%) are from startups founded in recent years, as failure rates are highest in the first 5 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Number Of Bankrupt Startups<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Specific data on formal bankruptcy filings for startups is limited, as many Indian startups close without entering insolvency proceedings under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC)\u2014they simply cease operations or get acquired. Reports note that “some” of the 31,197 shutdowns since 2019 involved bankruptcy, but no exact count is provided.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(a) Statista reports ~1,500\u20132,000 total business insolvencies per year in India across all companies (not startup-specific), with manufacturing and construction leading (startups are mostly in tech\/services).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(b) Notable startup bankruptcy examples since 2019 include Builder.ai (2025) and a few others like DHFL (2019, though not a startup), but overall, bankruptcy filings for startups are estimated at under 500 since 2019, as formal IBC is more common for larger companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How Many Startups Survived As Of September 2025<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Survival is total founded minus closed\/bankrupt (assuming most bankruptcies are included in closures).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(a) Using DPIIT data (conservative, as closures are low): ~174,664 active recognised startups overall (180,683 total recognised minus 6,019 closed). For those founded since 2019: ~165,000\u2013168,000 survived (estimated total founded since 2019 minus proportional closures).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(b) Using Tracxn data (more aggressive for closures): ~83,277 founded (2020\u20132024) minus ~30,000 closures since 2019 = ~53,277 survived<\/strong> (adjusting for 2019 founded and assuming most closures are from this cohort).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

General survival rate for Indian startups is ~10% long-term, but for recent cohorts (since 2019), it’s too early to determine final rates, as many are still in early stages.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Startup ecosystem of India is many decades old and it dates back to 1990 when the entrepreneurship journey of India in the modern era started. It gained significant momentum around 2014-2016. The Indian government’s launch of the Startup India initiative … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-p4lo-startups"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/odrindia.in\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/odrindia.in\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/odrindia.in\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/odrindia.in\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/odrindia.in\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/odrindia.in\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28,"href":"https:\/\/odrindia.in\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18\/revisions\/28"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/odrindia.in\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/odrindia.in\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/odrindia.in\/startups\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}