Data from Tracxn shows that in the first half of 2023, total funding for start-ups was $5.3 billion; in the same time of 2023, it declined by 3.8 per cent to approximately $5.1 billion.
Venture capital investors were increasingly seeking partial exits from late-stage start-ups, as reported by the Economic Times in March. This was due to rising pressure to generate returns amid a downturn in the technology market. Speaking to the Economic Times, Klaas Oskam, DC Advisory India chief executive, said, “We have seen a significant portion of what had to happen, but I think we’re still in a situation where companies that are profitable or are on a path to profitability… or are on a path to go public, will see a strong demand and strong ability to do secondaries.”
Some of the secondary stake transactions that happened or are in the process in 2024 include the investment by Temasek and Fidelity in Lenskart, the likely investment of Peak XV Partners and Tiger Global in e-commerce platform Meesho, and more.