Indian startups raised $678 million in October, a 47.5% month-on-month decline, as the absence of large funding rounds dragged overall investments. No startup secured a funding round of $100 million or more, while only Tessolve and Even Healthcare crossed the $50 million mark. Growth stage deals received a boost from rounds raised by Boldfit, DailyObjects, RapidCanvas and Nat Habit, while early stage funding saw moderate participation from Auxo AI, Cent, Mesa and Matiks.

The month saw no reported layoffs, while Jio Platforms made a high-profile stock market debut, followed by listings of Zetwerk and AceVector, the operator of Snapdeal. Merger and acquisition activity, however, remained limited to select sectors.

According to data compiled by Entrackr, Indian startups raised approximately $678 million in funding during October. This amount included 20 growth and late-stage deals totalling $414.6 million, along with 79 early-stage deals worth $263 million. Additionally, there were 9 undisclosed deals during the period.

October 2026 saw a sharp decline in startup funding compared to the same month last year. Total funding fell 60.8% to $677.8 million from $1.73 billion in October 2025. On a month-on-month basis, funding declined 47.5% from $1.29 billion in September. February was the strongest month for funding in 2026, with startups raising around $2 billion, followed by June, which also recorded around $2 billion. October’s decline came amid a lack of larger deals, with no startup raising $100 million or more during the month.

Growth and late-stage startups saw activity across sectors in October, led by semiconductor solutions provider Tessolve Semiconductor, which raised $75 million , followed by healthtech startup Even Healthcare with $50 million .

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