The 2017 Global Startup Ecosystem Report has listed four Asian countries in the top 20 startup ecosystems in the world. In 2015, the continent was represented by Singapore and Bengaluruonly. But this year, Beijing and Shanghai was added to the list.
Singapore now ranks 12th (10th in 2015) and Bengaluruis at number 20 (previously 15).
For Bengaluru, the scenario is a bit different because the main challenges it is facing are in the fields of talent and the startup ecosystem itself. On the talent front, while Bengaluruhas an immense amount of talent available, most of it is not industry-ready, which causes companies to spend more time training employees. But startups may not always have the time and the capacity to train talent.
The other challenge for Bengaluruis funding and high valuations of companies. Since it’s been taking investors longer to recover their investments, fewer companies in the city are getting funded. In fact, only eight out of 192 fintech startups were able to secure funding in 2015.
The government is also helping in terms of policy. The government of India has approved 100 percent foreign direct investments (FDI), which led to an increase of over 30 percent in FDIs last year. This will allow companies from other countries to provide funding and own up to 100 percent equity stakes in companies in India.
Affordable talent has always been a key factor for Bengalurus ince it costs 12 times less to hire an engineer here than it does in Silicon Valley. This allows companies to hire engineering and operations staff cost-effectively.
This is an excerpt from the article published on Tech In Asia. You can read it here.