Startup Street: Where India Stands In Global Startup Revolution

This week on Startup Street, the Centre of American Entrepreneurship’s report explains how India is emerging as the fastest-growing spots for startup activity. A Pune-based fintech startup faces data breach and Facebook plans to celebrate the country’s first ever Startup Day. Read on...

India’s Role In Startup Revolution

The startup culture took off gigantically in the U.S. 15-20 yeas ago,forming some of the largest tech companies seen today. But now the rest of the world, including India, is catching up.

India is one of the fastest-growing spots for startup activity, behind China and the U.K., a report by the Centre of American Entrepreneurship, ‘Rise of the Global Startup City’, said.

While Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru are known startup ecosystems of the country, the report also recognises Pune, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, and Kolkata as growing hubs.

Here are five data points that shows where India stands:

• India has the largest share of venture capital deals after the U.S. and the U.K., according to data between 2015 and 2017.
• Delhi, Bengaluru and Mumbai rank eighth, 10th and 19th in the top 20 global cities for venture capital deals.
• Ahmedabad ranks second in the top 20 global cities, which are seeing rapid growth in venture capital deals.
• Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru also feature in the top 20 global cities for angel and seed-stage deals.
• Delhi ranks fourth in the top 20 global cities for mega deals, i.e, deals worth $500 million or more.

Fintech Startup Faces Data Breach

EarlySalary, Pune-based fintech startup, faced a security breach in its database this week, joining the list of startups and other companies that have been hacked.

Names and mobile numbers of its potential customers were leaked, the startup said in a note on its website, without specifying the number of people who were affected. Personal and sensitive details of the startup’s current customers, however, remain protected, it said.

“The vulnerability has been fixed and law enforcement has been informed. We would like to reassure all potential and existing customers that all corrective measures have now been taken to protect customer security,” the statement said.

This is at least the third startup, including Zomato and FreshMenu, to admit a leak in its database.

EarlySalary is working with the law enforcement to trace the hacker’s IP address. It is also looking to strengthen its defence mechanism. “In response to the breach, additional security has been added to block threats. The database credentials have been changed, and additional security blocks have been placed on the EarlySalary website,” it said, apologising to those affected by the breach.

Facebook To Celebrate India’s First Ever Startup Day

Facebook is celebrating the first ever ‘India Startup Day’ on Oct. 9 to acknowledge the country’s thriving startup ecosystem.

It will be held in Delhi, the social media giant said on a dedicated website for the event.

“India Startup Day is our way of reaffirming our commitment to help enable the developer and startup community through our tech programs, and to support entrepreneurs who are building the future,” Facebook said.

The celebrations will be marked by Startup Day Awards, entries for which were closed earlier this week.

The award categories are:

• She Leads Tech: Award for the best startup with women founder/co-founders
• Building for the World: Award for the best startup building solutions used globally
• Building for Tomorrow: Award for the best startup building solutions using emerging technologies like AI/ML/AR/VR in India
• Building for the Next Billion: Award for the best startup that is developing, and implementing solutions to social, cultural, and/or environmental issues in India
• Community Builder: Award for the best startup building solutions to support the developer/startup community in India