Bengaluru: Bengaluru’s technology startup ecosystem attracted $4.4 billion in funding during the first nine months of 2026, accounting for 43% of India’s total tech funding, according to the Tracxn India Tech 9M 2026 report. The city’s share increased from 38% during the corresponding period last year, underlining its continued importance as a major technology and startup hub.

The report covers funding activity between January 1 and September 21, 2026. Across India, technology companies raised $10.3 billion during the period, a 7% increase from the $9.7 billion recorded in the first nine months of 2025. However, the increase in total capital came despite a sharp decline in the number of funding rounds.

Bengaluru funding rises 22%

Bengaluru’s $4.4-billion funding haul was around 22% higher than the $3.6 billion raised by startups in the city during the first nine months of 2025.

The city also raised almost as much as the next five major funding centres combined. Mumbai, Gurugram, Noida, Delhi and Hyderabad together attracted approximately $4.8 billion during the same period. Bengaluru’s funding was also higher than the combined amount raised by Mumbai, Gurugram and Noida.

The figures highlight the concentration of technology investment in established startup centres even as the broader Indian funding market becomes more selective.

India raises $10.3 billion despite fewer deals

India’s technology sector recorded 1,134 funding rounds during the first nine months of 2026, down 38% from 1,838 rounds during the same period in 2025.

At the same time, total funding increased from $9.7 billion to $10.3 billion. The divergence indicates that larger transactions accounted for a significant portion of the capital raised during the period.

India recorded 18 funding rounds of $100 million or more. Among the largest were Nxtra’s $1-billion private-equity round for data-centre expansion, Neysa’s $600-million Series B and CRED’s $540-million Series H round.

The funding pattern suggests that investors deployed substantial capital into a smaller number of companies and larger transactions.

CRED, Rapido and Sarvam among major Bengaluru deals

Several large funding rounds contributed to Bengaluru’s overall figure.

CRED raised $540 million, while mobility platform Rapido secured $240 million and AI company Sarvam raised $234 million. KreditBee attracted $220 million, followed by udaan with $160 million and Emergent with $130 million.

Rideriver, Slice, Navi and Pixxel also raised at least $100 million each during the period, according to Tracxn data cited in recent reports.

The deals covered sectors including fintech, mobility, artificial intelligence and technology infrastructure, reflecting the range of businesses attracting significant investment in Bengaluru.

Mumbai and Gurugram follow Bengaluru

Mumbai was the second-largest funding centre, attracting $1.8 billion during the first nine months of 2026. Its share of India’s technology funding increased to 18% from 16% a year earlier.

Gurugram recorded one of the largest increases among the major centres. Its funding more than doubled from $741 million in 9M 2025 to $1.6 billion, taking its share from 8% to 16%.

Noida raised $660 million, while Delhi attracted $446 million. Hyderabad recorded $298 million, up from $202 million in the corresponding period last year.

Pune’s funding fell to $184 million from $448 million, while Chennai remained relatively unchanged at $181 million. Ahmedabad recorded $64.9 million, compared with $135 million during the same period in 2025.

Enterprise technology and fintech attract capital

The funding data also shows a shift towards particular technology segments.

Enterprise Applications attracted $3.5 billion, up 49% year-on-year, while FinTech funding increased 13% to $2.2 billion. Enterprise Infrastructure recorded the sharpest growth among the major sectors, rising 436% to $1.6 billion from $292 million in the year-ago period.

At the individual business-segment level, AI Infrastructure received $1.2 billion, followed by Digital Lending at $799 million and Payments at $773 million.

The growth in infrastructure-related funding comes as businesses and investors continue to focus on technologies supporting artificial intelligence and digital services.

Seed-stage funding sees a decline

Despite the increase in overall funding, early-stage companies faced a more challenging funding environment.

Seed-stage funding declined 37% to $698 million, while early-stage funding increased 27% to $4.2 billion. Late-stage funding remained broadly stable at $5.4 billion.

The number of first-time funded companies also fell 30% to 338, while Series A and later-stage funding rounds declined 23% to 409.

This means the increase in overall funding does not represent an equal rise across all stages of the startup ecosystem. A larger share of available capital went towards established businesses and sizeable transactions.

Six new unicorns added in 2026

India added six new unicorns during the first nine months of 2026, compared with four in the same period in 2025.

According to Tracxn data, the new unicorns had raised an average of $101 million before their respective unicorn rounds, compared with $205 million for new unicorns during the first nine months of 2025.

The technology ecosystem also recorded 29 IPOs during the period, while 91 acquisitions were reported, down from 131 a year earlier.

Bengaluru remains a key startup funding centre

The latest figures place Bengaluru at the centre of India’s technology funding landscape in 2026. The city’s $4.4-billion funding total represents more than two-fifths of the country’s overall tech funding during the nine-month period.

At the same time, the wider data shows a more selective investment environment, with fewer funding rounds but larger individual transactions. Bengaluru’s strong performance has been supported by sizeable deals across fintech, mobility, artificial intelligence and enterprise technology.

With the data covering only January 1 to September 21, the final funding picture for the full year could change as additional deals are completed in the remaining months of 2026.