The rise of Indian cybersecurity sector in the new normal

Good morning!

The recent data breaches in JustDial, Unacademy, JusPay, Dr Reddy’s, Lupin, Bigbasket, and BuyUCoin, among others have put a question mark on the data security in India, and there have been calls to implement strict laws for cybersecurity. 

This, in turn, has opened the gates to an uncharted and untouched opportunity for Indian cybersecurity startups. 

The sizeable internet user base of India makes it one of the largest consumers of the cybersecurity segment. Additionally, the increased dependence of corporate houses on IT solutions during the pandemic has only added to the cybersecurity demand. 

While companies from the UK, Israel, Middle East and the US are giving India a tough fight in the cybersecurity segment — mainly because of their focus on building product-based solutions, which India has only just begun — the country is still in the first realm of data security, with enterprises and businesses still deploying end-point and other first-generation solutions, investors YourStory spoke with say.

With remote working being the new norm, investors expect more enterprises will be on the lookout for high-quality cybersecurity products that can be deployed quickly and are available at economical rates. 

Further, many Indian cybersecurity ventures have witnessed a significant uptick in inbound inquiries and signing up new customers post COVID-19. Considering this rise in demand and the resulting traction, investors expect this sector to get a lot of attention this year. 

Read more on how this sector is poised to touch a pinnacle in the new normal. 

The Interview

Delhi-based Wingify is one of the few Indian companies with more than 4,000 clients in over 90 countries, and close to $23 million annual recurring revenue. While sharing his secret sauce of building a profitable SaaS business out of India without any external funding, Paras Chopra, Founder and Chairman, Wingify, said, “A startup’s success is a complex outcome of many factors, and money is just one of them.” During the conversation, he also spoke about his learnings, decisions, the journey of bootstrapping, and more.

Editor’s Pick: The Turning Point

Growing up, Chandraprakash Joshi always wanted to get a government job. While he managed to pass the exams and achieve his goal, the lack of guidance almost derailed his plans. This realisation led him to launch ixamBee, a Delhi-based edtech startup that aims to help millions of students across India to crack competitive exams with the appropriate guidance. Read more.

Startup Spotlight

OneBasket enables farmers to directly reach consumers by standardising supply chains

Serial entrepreneur Madhusudhan Reddy Salla saw all developed countries adopting newer cutting-edge technologies to modernise their agri supply chains. However, India, despite having the largest farming community in the world, was lagging behind. He realised that there isn’t any standardisation or traceability for agri products in the industry, leading to opportunity-driven trade and non-standard products flooding the market. With Narsi Reddy as the core team member, Madhusudhan founded OneBasket in 2019 in Hyderabad as a full-stack agritech startup. Read more.

News & Updates

• Google has pledged $250,000 for COVID-19 vaccinations and technical assistance towards vaccine delivery in low- and middle-income countries and announced that it is helping to fund pop-up vaccine sites in the US.

• 9Unicorns has announced the third close of its first accelerator fund at $40 million to fund idea-stage startups in India with some of the key LPs, including Haldiram's, Indian Bank, and Ahmedabad-based Chona Family Office.

• At Amazon Smbhav Summit 2021, Chief Economic Advisor Dr Krishnamurthy Subramanian said that the SME sector is the backbone of the economy, and the Indian manufacturing sector has immense potential in terms of creating jobs.

• As per a report by EdelGive Foundation, businesses owned by women entrepreneurs in India are likely to witness 90 percent growth in the next five years in India.

• Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal chaired the first meeting of the National Startup Advisory Council and called upon successful entrepreneurs to share their knowledge, experience, and ideas with students and youth.

Before you go, stay inspired with… 

“Cybersecurity companies have to spend a lot on building both product and talent, hence investors need to invest with a long term view and help the company evolve naturally. Unlike consumer internet companies, cybersecurity companies take longer to start monetising, hence we need more patient capital.” 

— Anil Joshi, Managing Partner, Unicorn India Ventures

Now get the Daily Capsule in your inbox. Subscribe to our newsletter today!