Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi
New Delhi, May 7: India's private equity and venture capital (PE-VC) landscape witnessed a solid rebound in 2024, with investments rising by 9% year-on-year to touch $43 billion across nearly 1,600 deals, reaffirming the country’s stature as the second-largest PE-VC destination in the Asia-Pacific region, a new report by Bain & Company revealed.
The growth surge, primarily led by venture capital and growth equity, reflects the mounting confidence global investors have in India’s macroeconomic stability, according to the Bain report released on Wednesday. India accounted for around 20% of total regional PE-VC investment, underscoring its expanding prominence in the global investment arena.
Partner at Bain & Company, Prabhav Kashyap, noted a strategic shift towards buyout deals, which formed 51% of overall PE deal values in 2024, up from 37% in 2022. “Funds are gravitating towards control positions in high-quality assets across sectors,” Kashyap said, highlighting the influence of record dry powder reserves and the quest for scalable value creation.
While private equity investments remained steady at $29 billion, a high-valuation environment in public markets led to delays in deal closures. However, traditional sectors remained the backbone of this resurgence.
Key highlights from sector performance:
• Real estate and infrastructure emerged as the top-performing sectors, clocking a 70% surge in deal value and comprising 16% of total PE-VC inflows.
• Financial services posted a strong 25% growth, largely attributed to non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), especially in affordable housing finance, which saw 14 deals — including seven valued over $100 million.
• IT/ITeS and healthcare also maintained steady momentum, while energy and manufacturing sectors slowed after two years of robust activity due to valuation pressures and intense competition.
Meanwhile, 2024 turned out to be a landmark year for investment exits in India, as the report notes that the country outpaced all other Asia-Pacific markets, with exit values reaching $33 billion, up 16% year-on-year. This exit boom was propelled by the buoyancy of public markets, enabling investors to offload matured stakes effectively.
As India continues to ride on a wave of investor optimism and economic reforms, the report suggests that buyouts and sector-specific plays in real estate, finance, and healthcare will likely remain at the forefront of the country's evolving investment narrative.