This marks a slight uptick in total capital raised compared to the same period last year, when startups secured around $4.54 billion across 418 deals.
However, deal activity remained largely flat, with the number of transactions dipping marginally from 418 in H1 2024 to 410.
According to the data, ecommerce drew the most investment—about $1.3 billion—in the first six months, followed by fintech with $1 billion. Other sectors that raised significant capital include enterprise software, deeptech and healthtech.
Among the notable fundraisers during the period were ecommerce platform Meesho, which raised around $270 million, with new investors Tiger Global, Think Investments and Mars Growth Capital joining the company’s ongoing capital raise.
IPO-bound stockbroking platform Groww raised around $200 million from various investors, including Singapore-based sovereign wealth fund GIC and Tiger Global. PB Healthcare Services, an affiliate of PB Fintech, secured $218 million in its first major equity round, which was led by US-based venture capital firm General Catalyst.
Growth-stage startups received the highest funding across sectors, followed by those in the early stage. Growth stage startups raised $3.7 billion in H1 2025, an increase from the $3.6 billion they raised in H1 2024. Early stage funding amounted to $1.1 billion.
While the funding in the first six months of 2025 has surpassed H1 2023 levels, it remains significantly below the peak seen in H1 2022, when startups raised $16.2 billion across 704 deals, the data showed.
Several startups have also filed their draft red herring prospectuses (DRHPs) this year and are preparing for public listings in the coming months. These include Shadowfax, PhysicsWallah, Boat, Urban Company, Shiprocket, Groww, Pine Labs, Capillary Tech, Wakefit, and Curefoods.
Unicorn addition slows
India minted just five new unicorns in the first half of 2025, a slower pace despite signs of recovery from the ‘funding winter’. This year’s unicorn count stands in stark contrast to 2021, when 45 were created during the peak of the funding boom.
The companies that entered the unicorn club this year are fleet safety and video telematics company Netradyne, logistics platform Porter, pet food brand Drools, omnichannel jewellery retailer BlueStone, and B2B marketplace Jumbotail.
