New Delhi: The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Friday approved the Startup India Fund of Funds 2.0 with a total corpus of Rs10,000 crore. The new fund aims to mobilise domestic venture capital and provide long-term financial support to the country’s growing startup ecosystem.
The scheme is designed to accelerate the next phase of India’s startup journey by strengthening the venture capital environment and encouraging innovation-driven entrepreneurship across the country. It builds on the foundation laid by the Startup India initiative launched in 2016.
Since 2016, India’s startup ecosystem has expanded rapidly. The number of recognised startups has grown from fewer than 500 to over two lakh startups registered with the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade. Startup registrations in 2025 touched their highest level so far, according to an official statement.
Startup India Fund of Funds 2.0 follows the earlier Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS 1.0), which was launched in 2016 to address funding gaps. Under FFS 1.0, the entire Rs10,000 crore corpus was committed to 145 Alternative Investment Funds.
These funds have invested more than Rs25,500 crore in over 1,370 startups across sectors such as agriculture, artificial intelligence, robotics, clean technology, fintech, healthcare, manufacturing, space technology, and biotechnology.
The first phase helped nurture first-time founders, attract private capital, and strengthen India’s domestic venture capital market. The new phase will focus on deep technology and advanced manufacturing, support early-growth startups, and encourage investment beyond major metro cities.
It will also address high-risk capital gaps in priority sectors and further strengthen India’s domestic venture capital base, especially smaller funds.
