All Indian start-ups that turned unicorns in 2024
The Indian start-up ecosystem experienced remarkable growth in 2024, with six companies joining the prestigious unicorn club—firms valued at $1 billion or more. This marked a substantial leap from 2023, which saw just two unicorns, CRED and Zepto. The year 2024 showcased a surge in innovation across diverse sectors, including fintech, electric vehicles, AI, and SaaS. Here's a closer look at the inspiring journeys of the start-ups that achieved unicorn status in 2024.
Moneyview turned unicorn in September
Moneyview, founded in 2014 by Puneet Agarwal and Sanjay Aggarwal, has established itself as a leading platform for personal loans, financial management solutions, and credit tracking. The Bengaluru-based fintech start-up achieved unicorn status in September, raising ₹38.6 crore in equity funding from Accel India and Nexus Ventures, securing a $1.2 billion valuation. In FY23, its operating revenue soared 160% to ₹577 crore from ₹222 crore in FY22, while its profit surged to ₹163 crore from ₹6 crore the previous year.
Ather Energy entered unicorn club in August
Ather Energy, founded in 2013 by Tarun Mehta and Swapnil Jain, is a prominent player in the electric two-wheeler industry. The IPO-bound OEM entered the unicorn club in August 2024, securing ₹600 crore in funding from National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) at a $1.3 billion valuation. Ather's loss widened to ₹1,059.7 crore in FY24 from ₹864.5 crore in FY23, according to backer Hero MotoCorp. Revenue from operations rose marginally by 0.3% YoY to ₹1,789.10 crore during the same period.
Rapido became a unicorn in July
Rapido, a ride-hailing company, was founded in 2015 by Rishikesh SR, Pavan Guntupalli, and Aravind Sanka. In July 2024, Rapido joined the unicorn club after raising $120 million in its Series E round from WestBridge Capital, achieving a post-money valuation of over $1 billion. The company reported a net loss of ₹674.5 crore in FY23, marking a 50% increase from ₹439 crore in FY22. However, its operating revenue saw impressive growth, jumping 3X to ₹443 crore in FY23 from.
RateGain has a global footprint of over 3,200 customers
RateGain, founded in 2004 by Bhanu Chopra, provides SaaS solutions tailored for travel and hospitality businesses. It entered the coveted unicorn club earlier this year. With a global footprint of over 3,200 customers and 700 partners across 100 countries, the company focuses on driving revenue growth for brands through acquisition, retention, and wallet share expansion. In Q1 FY25, RateGain reported a 48% jump in profit after tax to ₹50.02 crore, up from ₹33.78 crore in the same period last year.
Perfios was the second unicorn of the year
Perfios, a fintech SaaS company founded in 2008 by VR Govindarajan and Debasish Chakraborty, operates across 18 countries and collaborates with over 1,000 financial institutions. In March, Perfios joined the unicorn club, becoming the year's second unicorn after raising $80 million. The start-up has raised over $439 million in total funding. The fintech unicorn turned profitable in FY23, reporting a consolidated net profit of ₹7.8 crore, driven by strong growth in service income from its India operations.
Krutrim AI was India's first unicorn in 2024
Krutrim, founded in April 2023 by Bhavish Aggarwal, the creator of Ola Cabs and Ola Electric, is an AI start-up that reached unicorn status in January 2024. The milestone was achieved through a $50 million funding round led by Matrix Partners India, marking Aggarwal's third unicorn venture. Specializing in large language models (LLMs), the company offers Krutrim Base and Krutrim Pro, which can generate text in 10 languages and understand over 20 Indian languages.
