Investments in B2B e-comm space grows 300% to $85 mn in 2016

A majority of the growth is being seen in the food & beverages, fashion and industrial goods sectors

Venture capital investments in India’s business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce space is picking up steam, with a 300 per cent rise at $85 million in the year so far compared to investments in 2015.

According to a report from start-up analyst Tracxn, India is home to some 400 B2B start-ups today, eight of which have raised Series A investment. Unlike in the consumer internet space where Bengaluru is home to the largest number of firms, in B2B e-commerce the National Capital Region houses 138 firms.

While India’s B2B e-commerce sector lags far behind the likes of China and the US which saw investments to the tune of $950 million and $140 million, respectively, it is growing at a fast clip.

In its report, Tracxn categorises four Indian firms – IndiaMart, Power2SME, JustBuyLive and Mjunction – as soonicorns (companies with the potential to become unicorns or private firms valued at $1 billion).

Majority of the growth is being seen in the food & beverages, fashion and industrial goods sectors, and also the home improvement sector to a smaller degree. However, no Indian company currently features in the top 100 best-funded start-ups in the global B2B e-commerce space.