HDFC Bank to disburse ₹20 crore under FY26 Parivartan Startup Grants

It will support 10 strategic initiatives across priority sectors including climate innovation, agriculture and sustainable livelihoods, manufacturing and MSME innovation, financial inclusion, etc

HDFC Bank on Tuesday said it plans to disburse Rs 20 crore under the FY26 edition of the Parivartan Startup Grants programme for supporting social impact-driven innovations.

The programme will support 10 strategic initiatives across priority sectors including climate innovation, agriculture and sustainable livelihoods, manufacturing and MSME innovation, financial inclusion, and gender diversity and inclusion, along with emerging areas including AI and deep technology.

It follows an incubator-led, portfolio-based model, under which partner incubators lead programme design, startup outreach, evaluation, mentoring, monitoring, and impact reporting, it said.

"Parivartan Startup Grants has evolved as a benchmark in the industry that works closely with institutions to support innovation addressing clearly identified social and environmental challenges," HDFC Bank Deputy Managing Director Kaizad Bharucha said.

The focus is on further deepening sector engagement, strengthening ecosystems, and building institutional capacity to enable startups receive sustained and structured support, he said.

Since its inception in 2017, Parivartan Startup Grants programme has supported about 500 startups, including 87 startups in FY25 alone, through partnerships with more than 130 incubators across India, it said.

Cumulatively, the programme has deployed over Rs 85 crore in grant funding, with nearly 40 per cent of supported startups originating from Tier II and Tier III cities, it added.