E-Paper
Bengaluru beats Delhi, Mumbai to retain first position in start-up landscape with $2.54 billion funding in H1 2025
India's start-ups secured 5.7 billion dollars in H1 2025, marking an 8 per cent growth year-on-year. Bengaluru dominated with 2.54 billion dollars in funding.
According to Inc42’s H1 2025 Start-up Funding Report, Bengaluru has emerged as the undisputed leader in start-up funding in India, securing a massive 2.54 billion dollars across 143 deals — outpacing Delhi-NCR (116 deals, 1.5 billion dollars) and Mumbai (80 deals, 856 million dollars).
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The report revealed that Tier 1 cities dominated, capturing 93 per cent of the total funding pie, with Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR, and Mumbai alone accounting for 84 per cent of all capital raised. “Bengaluru retained its position as India’s most funded start-up hub,” the report said.
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Celebrating the city’s top spot, the Department of ITBT, Karnataka, posted on X: “Namma Bengaluru Leads Again! In H1 2025, #Bengaluru topped India’s startup funding charts: $3.9 Billion raised; 40% of India’s total deal value. Karnataka continues to power India’s innovation economy!”
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India's start-ups collectively raised 5.7 billion dollars in the first half of 2025, closely aligning with projections. This marks an 8 per cent year-over-year growth, driven primarily by the booming ecommerce and fintech sectors. Five new unicorns emerged, underscoring the sector’s resilience despite global economic headwinds, the report stated.
Looking ahead, investor focus is shifting towards AI and hardware start-ups, signaling growing confidence in India’s deeptech and R&D landscape, the report added. With H2 2025 expected to push total funding to $14–15 billion, Bengaluru remains at the heart of India’s innovation economy.
