India Deals Barometer Report: Startup funding edges up in May but still below year-ago levels

Startup fundraising in India picked up in May from the previous month’s 14-month low but remained well below year-ago levels, underscoring continued investor caution despite the green shoots of recovery.

Deal value rose by nearly 15% month-on-month in May, inching above the psychologically important $1 billion mark to $1.03 billion. However, the number of venture capital (VC) and private equity (PE) deals declined to 96, down 17% from April’s 116 transactions, according to proprietary data compiled by DealStreetAsia.

On a year-on-year basis, total deal value dropped sharply by 44% from the $1.85 billion raised from 126 deals in May 2024, indicating that while funding value is improving, overall investor activity remains subdued.

The values of seven deals in May were undisclosed.

Looking at the year so far, startup fundraising between January and April has been volatile, with an overall downward trend. In January, funding was robust at $1.8 billion, but it dropped sharply to $943 million in February—a nearly 48% decline. March saw a partial rebound to $1.4 billion, indicating a temporary recovery or renewed investor confidence. However, this momentum did not sustain, as funding fell again to $899 million in April.

In May, only one mega deal—defined as a transaction worth $100 million or more—was closed, the same as in the previous month. Logistics startup Porter raised $200 million in a Series F round led by Kedaara Capital and Wellington Management. The mix of primary and secondary transactions reportedly pushed Porter into the unicorn club, with a valuation between $1.1 billion and $1.2 billion.

Top ten funding deals in May 2025

Other prominent funding deals sealed in May were by value fashion retailer Citykart ($63 million), non-banking financial company Saarathi Finance ($55 million), snack brand Farmley ($40 million), AI-powered corporate transport platform Routematic ($40 million), and commercial space design platform Flipspaces ($35 million).

Porter deal pushes logistics industry to pole position

Logistics/distribution emerged as the top-funded industry in May, attracting $247 million across seven deals—a sharp rise from $13.5 million raised through two transactions in April.

While Porter accounted for the majority of the funding, cold chain logistics firm Celcius Logistics raised $30 million in a round co-led by Eurazeo and Omnivore, with IvyCap Ventures also participating.

Other notable deals included Fleetx.io ($13.2 million), Tan90 Thermal ($2.3 million), Shiplog ($768,000), Store My Goods ($460,000), and Citrus Freight ($295,159).

Retail followed as the second-highest funded industry, with $137.5 million raised across 11 deals—more than five times the funding seen in April. The standout deal in this category was value fashion retailer Citykart’s $63-million Series B round, co-led by TPG NewQuest and A91 Partners.

Other prominent deals within retail were sealed by Snitch ($33 million), 1-India Family Mart ($12 million), Slikk ($10 million), Miraggio ($6.5 million), BlissClub ($5.3 million), and BlueStone ($4.7 million), among others.

Occupying the third spot in terms of funding value was Financial Services with a total funding of $131.6 million across 10 transactions. This is, however, a drop of about 19% in value from April. Mumbai-headquartered Saarathi Finance, a newly established non-banking financial company, sealed the largest deal within financial services after raising nearly $55 million in its first round of funding.

Other fundraising deals within financial services were inked by Propelld ($30.5 million), Fuze ($12.2 million), M1xchange ($10 million), Dvara KGFS ($8.43 million), Kaleidofin ($5.3 million), and Samunnati ($5 million).

Together, the top three industries—logistics & distribution, retail, and financial services—raised a total of $516 million, accounting for 50% of the total deal value in the month.

Growth-stage funding picks up pace

In terms of value, growth-stage deals, defined as Series B or post-Series B rounds (including private equity and pre-IPO rounds), led the funding with a share of about 62% of the total deal value in May as against 45% in April. These companies collectively garnered $637.7 million through 20 investments in the month compared with an aggregate of $406.8 million raised in the previous month across 13 transactions.

Share of deal value by funding stage

Prominent growth rounds in the month included Porter ($200-million Series F), Samunnati ($5-million Series E), Propelld ($30.5-million Series D), 1-India Family Mart ($12-million Series D), Farmley ($40-million Series C), Routematic ($40-million Series C), Vetic ($26-million Series C), Fleetx.io ($13.2 million), Citykart ($63-million Series B), Snitch ($33-million Series B), and Battery Smart ($29-million Series B), among others.

Early-stage funding remained subdued in May, with pre-seed and seed-stage startups collectively raising $86.4 million across 32 deals—an increase in value but a decline in volume compared to April’s $63.6 million from 39 deals. The largest seed round was secured by Complement1, a healthtech venture founded by WhiteHat Jr’s Karan Bajaj, which raised $16 million in a round led by Owl Ventures and Blume Ventures.

Other notable seed-stage fundraises included Mythik ($15 million), Alt Carbon ($12 million), PierSight ($6 million), Adopt AI ($6 million), Sedna HoReCa ($5.8 million), and Inspecity ($5.6 million).

Pre-Series A and Series A funding saw a notable decline in May, with a total of $184.3 million raised across 32 deals—a 40% drop from April’s $306.8 million across 38 transactions. The largest Series A round was raised by Saarathi Finance, which secured $55 million.

Other significant Series A deals included Flam ($14 million), Fuze ($12.2 million), Avammune Therapeutics ($12 million), Slikk ($10 million), Data Sutram ($9 million), Posha ($8 million), and Footprints Preschool & Daycare ($7.5 million).

Most active investors

Venture capital firms Elevation Capital and IvyCap emerged as the top investors in May with four investments each. Elevation Capital made investments in agentic AI startup Adopt AI, D2C activewear brand BlissClub, AI startup Zoca, and quick service app Snabbit.

Meanwhile, IvyCap backed startups including D2C menswear brand Snitch, cold chain logistics provider Celcius Logistics, healthtech startup Avammune Therapeutics, and industrial interconnect solutions company TIEA Connectors.

Accel, Arkam Ventures, Inflection Point Ventures, Lightspeed, and Titan Capital made it to the second place with three investments each.

Other active investors in the month were Anicut Capital, Better Capital, Blume Ventures, British International Investment (BII), and Fireside Ventures