The value of investments by Private Equity - Venture Capital (PE-VC) firms in India fell by 38% to less than $30 Billion in 2023. PE-VC firms invested $29.7 Billion (across 756 deals) in Indian companies in 2023, compared to $47.6 Billion (across 1,362 deals) in the previous year, reports Venture Intelligence, a research service focused on private company financials, transactions, and their valuations. (Note: These figures exclude PE investments in Real Estate).
2023 witnessed 67 mega deals ($100 M+ rounds) worth $21.2 Billion, compared to 112 such investments worth $31.8 Billion in 2022. The $2.4 Billion investment in Manipal Hospitals by Temasek (which gained majority control) and TPG Capital was the largest PE-VC investment in 2023. This was followed by the $1.35 Billion buyout of education loans focused HDFC Credila by Baring Asia and ChrysCapital and the $1 Billion investment by Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) in Reliance Retail.
2023 saw just 2 "Unicorn" companies (VC-funded startups valued at $1 Billion or more) being created, compared to 21 in 2022 (and a record 44 in 2021). Quick commerce startup Zepto (which attracted $ 231 million led by foreign investors in August 2023), was joined on the Unicorns list towards the year end by consumer & small business loans firm Incred Finance (which attracted $60 million from domestic Family Offices and HNIs).
By Industry
IT & ITeS companies accounted for $8 Billion of the total PE-VC investment pie in 2023, a 61% decrease when compared with 2022 (which saw $20.7 Billion being invested). The $500 Million each attracted by Quest Global (from Carlyle Group) and Lenskart (from ADIA ) topped the tech industry table, followed by IBS Software raising $450 Million from Apax Partners.
The Healthcare & Life Sciences industry attracted $5.5 Billion during 2023 - a 1.3x increase from the $4.2 Billion raised during the previous year. The $2.4 Billion investment in Manipal Hospitals by Temasek and TPG Capital led the table, followed by two other majority stake acquisitions: the $732 million investment in Indira IVF (by Baring Asia) and $700 million investment in Care Hospitals by Blackstone.
The Energy industry saw $4.5 Billion worth of investments in 2023 - a 1.2x increase compared to the $3.9 Billion invested in 2022. Energy sector investment was led by the $1 Billion investment by Brookfield in Avaada Ventures, followed by the $700 million fundraise of Greenko Group (from ADIA and GIC) and $ 500 million fundraise by Hexa Climate Solutions (from I Squared Capital).
“While large ticket PE investors focused their attention towards sectors like Healthcare, Financial Services and Infrastructure, 2023 saw the slowdown in Growth- and Late- Stage investing trickle into the Venture Capital segment as well,” noted Arun Natarajan, Founder of Venture Intelligence. “Towards the year end, on the back of the strong public markets, private markets received a dose of optimism, which also translated into a few large growth stage tech investments going through,” he added.
Venture Intelligence is India's longest-serving provider of data and analysis on Private Company Financials, Transactions (private equity, venture capital, and M&A) & their Valuations in India.
(Venture Intelligence Subscribers will be mailed detailed reports of the PE-VC action during 2023 in the next few days.)