Even as 2016 started on a slow note as far as startup investments were concerned, the somber mood did not deter angel investors from backing the new wave of startups.

Ratan Tata and Kunal Shah emerged as the most active angel investors in 2016 with both of them having invested in at least 17 startups each during the year, as per the data based on announced deals compiled by DEALSTREETASIA.

T V Mohandas Pai has come in as the second most prolific angel investor with investments in about a dozen startups. While Sandeep Tandon has occupied the third slot with about 11 investments, Anupam Mittal had invested in at least 10 start-ups as on December 20, 2016.

In fact, many investors who participated actively in big-ticket funding rounds last year were over-cautious with investments this year, which thereby led many startups to shut shop.

According to data analytics Tracxn, about 212 start-ups closed down this year, almost a 50 per cent jump over last year when about 140 startups put the shutters down permanently. Some of the prominent start-ups to close down this year amid a slow funding environment include PepperTap, AskMe.com, Parcelled, DoorMint, Amber Wellness, and Tooler.

However, some continued to get support from the biggies in the industry and have grown further.

Ratan Tata, the chairman emeritus of Tata Group, this year too held hands of many budding entrepreneurs. During the year, he invested in a couple of ventures that were floated only in 2015 including Niki, an artificial intelligence-based chatbot, Bengaluru-based home rental startup NestAway, and Singapore-based B2B e-commerce platform Moglix.

The 79-year old veteran has also put money in the US-based virtual fitness platform GOQii, Mumbai-based e-ticketing startup Kyazoonga, wearable gaming platform MadRatGames, and online seller of eyewear accessories LensKart to name a few.

Although Tata’s most investments are often undisclosed, startups that receive backing from him benefit not only in terms of the finances but also from his expert mentoring to scale the businesses. Tata’s investments are spread across sectors, but a majority of his funds are directed towards the Internet, software and services sector.

Mohandas Pai, chairman of Aarin Capital Partners and Manipal Global Education Services, too has been aggressive in the software technology space this year. His investments include sound-based proximity payment company ToneTag, artificial intelligence-powered smart assistant Skedool.it, start-up data analytics firm Tracxn, and US-based Capria Accelerator.

These angel investors have come as a saviour for the startups at a time when venture capital firms are holding back on investments doubting returns from previous investments. VCs are revising their strategy of investments by focusing on small ticket sizes and having a mixed portfolio of companies.

While ups and downs happen in every industry, the opportunity in India has not really shrunk. VCs are just readjusting their strategy. At the same time, angel and seed funding are going up. Better margins, and defensibility of businesses is the key focus of the year, said a Nasscom report.

Indian startups could attract $4 billion (Rs 26,700 crore) of investment this year, an 18 per cent decrease from last year’s $4.9 billion, said a Nasscom-Zinnov report for 2016 on the sector released in October.

FreeCharge co-founder Sandeep Tandon has been another prominent investor this year. He has invested in online B2B fruits and vegetables marketplace Bharat Bazaar along with co-founder Kunal Shah, Pai, Rohit Bansal and Kunal Bahl of Snapdeal, Anupam Mittal of Shaadi.com, and others. He has also put money in payments firm Remitr, Bangalore-based scrap collection and recycling startup EnCashea, and online wedding services marketplace ShaadiSaga.

Nandan Nilekani, the man behind Aadhaar and a co-founder of Infosys, too has made it to the top ten investors’ list this year. He has invested in at least nine startups this year including 10i Commerce Services, train travel app RailYatri.in, Sedemac Mechatronics, Tracxn, and eye-care chain Drishti Medical Services.

Other investors in the top ten include Anand Chandrasekaran, the former head of products at e-commerce marketplace Snapdeal; Google’s Ranjan Anandan; Raghunandan G, founder, TaxiForSure; Flipkart CEO Binny Bansal; Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma; Anand Ladsariya, founder of chemicals maker Everest Flavours; Snapdeal founders Kunal Bahl, Rohit Bansal; Manipal Education and Medical Group CEO Ranjan Pai; and Apoorv Ranjan Sharma who is the Co-Founder of Venture Catalysts.

Also Read: India 2016: Reality check for internet economy startups

India 2016: Over 200 venture-backed startups shut shop

India 2016: Ratan Tata, Kunal Shah among top startup investors

Start your deal-making journey now!

Bring stories like this into your inbox every day.

Sign up for our newsletter - The Daily Brief