Top Startups to watch in 2016

Startups in India reached new highs this year. As we move in another year, we brace for the next wave of innovation, disruption, consolidation, and dissolution. The year 2016 brings lots of optimism for the startups.

KnowStartup looks at top 25 startups that have the potential to turn heads well into 2016 and beyond.

1. Paytm

Paytm was founded and incubated by One97 communications in 2010 as a prepaid mobile recharge website. Based in Delhi-NCR, its investors include Ant Financials (AliPay), SAIF Partners, Sapphire Venture and Silicon Valley Bank. Today,it is India’s most popular online destination for prepaid mobile and DTH recharges and shopping, and its Android and iOS apps have been ranked among the most popular apps. In three years since the founding, the company created a user base of 25 million wallet users and 10 million app downloads.

2. Flipkart

Flipkart is an e-commerce company founded by Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal, two IIT Delhi graduates in 2007. It is a Singaporean company which operates in India, where it is headquartered in Bangalore, Karnataka. Flipkart has launched its own product range under the name “DigiFlip” with products including tablets, USBs, and laptop bags. In May 2014, Flipkart received $210 million from DST Global, in July 2014 it raised $1 billion led by existing investors Tiger Global and South Africa’s media group Naspers and in May 2015 it raised $550 million from some of its existing investors. Flipkart’s last fundraising round in May 2015 had pegged its valuation at $15 billion

3. Snapdeal

Snapdeal is an online marketplace, New Delhi, India. The company was started by Kunal Bahl, a Wharton graduate as part of the dual degree M&T Engineering and Business program at Penn, and Rohit Bansal, an alumnus of IIT Delhi in February 2010. Bahl originally launched Snapdeal.com as a daily online deals site and was often touted as India’s answer to Groupon. The model has, however, changed and is today one of India’s largest online marketplace.

4. Personal Loan Guru

Established in 2015, Personal Loan Guru is one of India’s top Loan agencies that give consumers access to customized rate quotes on personal loans or personal finance products such as doctor loan offers. Several of India’s leading financial institutions have chosen to integrate themselves with Personal Loan Guru.