DPIIT Holds Discussions With VCs & PEs To Spur FDI

SUMMARY

The meeting, which was attended by representatives of various pension funds, PEs and VCs, deliberated on various ways to increase foreign investment into India

Earlier this month, DPIIT officials also held discussions with various stakeholders, including law firms and industry chambers, on the matter of increasing FDI

Overall, Indian startups raised $12 Bn across 993 deals in 2024, a 20% increase compared to 2023

Ahead of National Startup Day, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has held discussions to spur foreign direct investments (FDI) into the country.

As per news agency PTI, the meeting was attended by representatives of various pension funds, private equity (PE) and venture capital (VC) firms. The two sides reportedly deliberated on various ways to increase foreign investment inflow into India.

It is pertinent to note this is the second such meeting in recent weeks. Earlier this month, DPIIT officials also held discussions with various stakeholders, including law firms and industry chambers, on the matter of increasing foreign investments.

During the meeting last week, law firms urged the government to allow FDI in the inventory-based models of ecommerce platforms for online trade for export purposes only. This, the law firms, said

Notably, the deliberations around FDI come barely two months after commerce minister Piyush Goyal directed ecommerce platforms to stick to the rule of the law on the matter of foreign direct investments. At the time, he also said that the country’s FDI norms were crystal clear for ecommerce players.

That said, foreign investments are key to India’s growth, especially the country’s burgeoning startup ecosystem. These investments help bring in much-needed capital for expansion, access to cutting-edge technologies, and opportunities to expand globally.

On the flip side, global VC and PE firms are making a beeline to India to capitalise on the growing entrepreneurial wave in the country and acquire a pie of the growing Indian digital economy. As per reports, FDI accounted for nearly 36% of the total capital raised by Indian startups in the past decade.

Overall, Indian startups continued to operate in the shadow of extended funding winter in 2024, although the situation was better compared to 2023. Homegrown new-age tech ventures raised $12 Bn across 993 deals last year, a 20% increase compared to the preceding year.