New Delhi, Apr 10 (KNN) India's booming startup ecosystem hit a speed bump in 2024, with the number of unicorns (companies valued at USD 1 billion or more) declining for the first time since 2017, according to the Hurun Global Unicorn Index 2024 released on Tuesday.

The report revealed that the number of Indian unicorns dropped from 68 in 2022 and 2023 to 67 this year.

However, Indian founders have been increasingly successful in creating unicorns outside the country, with 109 unicorns co-founded by Indians globally compared to just 67 within India itself.

"Indian founders produced more offshore unicorns than any other country," said Rupert Hoogewerf, Chairman and Chief Researcher at Hurun Report.

Most of these overseas unicorns (95) are based in the United States, particularly in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Among the leading unicorns based in India are on-demand delivery startup Swiggy, fantasy sports platform Dream11 (valued at $8 billion each), and fintech company Razorpay (USD 7.5 billion).

The United States continues to dominate the global unicorn landscape with 703 unicorns, followed by China (340) and India (67).

However, China and India have a higher percentage of promising startups likely to become unicorns within the next three to five years.

The report noted a decline in valuations for some unicorns, with 42 companies globally losing their unicorn status due to valuations falling below USD 1 billion.

The largest drop was seen in Indian edtech giant Byju's, valued at USD 22 billion last year.

San Francisco (190 unicorns), New York (133), and Beijing (78) emerged as the world's leading unicorn hubs.

In India, Bengaluru ranked 7th globally with 32 unicorns, while Mumbai came in at 19th with 14 unicorns.

Despite the recent slowdown, India's startup ecosystem continues to showcase its potential, with a growing number of founders making their mark both at home and abroad.

(KNN Bureau)