Indian startup ecosystem sets new benchmark in 2021 with record 119 M&A deals

The year 2021 has been a defining one for the Indian startup ecosystem in more ways than one — record amount of fund inflow, creation of new unicorns, companies going public, and a new benchmark in terms of mergers & acquisitions (M&A).

The number of M&A transactions since January 2021 till now stands at 119 as compared to 86 such deals for the whole of 2020, according to YourStory Research. This amounted to an M&A value of $1.3 billion in 2020; in 2021, the figure hit $3.8 billion. These are only the disclosed deals; majority of them are undisclosed and the value may actually be higher.

And there’s likely more to come, considering that we are still almost five months away from the end of the year.

The strong M&A momentum in the Indian startup ecosystem can be gauged by tracking the edtech unicorn BYJU’S, which has invested a little over $2 billion to acquire seven companies this year.