New Delhi, NFAPost: India’s new-age economy is projected to nearly triple to around $300 billion in revenue by financial year 2030-31 (FY31) from about $100 billion in 2025-26 (FY26), bringing it close to the scale of the country’s IT services sector, according to a report by Redseer Strategy Consultants.
Driven by artificial intelligence (AI), knowledge capital and digital innovation, the new-age economy comprises digitally native businesses and companies that use technology as a core part of their business model, unlike traditional businesses where digital is primarily a secondary channel.
The combined revenue of domestic new-age companies is estimated to have risen from $33 billion in FY22 to around $100 billion in FY26. Redseer expects the sector to grow at around 25 per cent annually between FY26 and FY31 to reach the $300-billion mark.
Consumption-led sectors, including consumer goods, retail and leisure, are expected to remain the cornerstone of growth, reaching about $150 billion by FY31 at an annual growth rate of around 25 per cent. That would account for nearly half of the new-age economy, although growth would moderate from 32 per cent annually between FY22 and FY26.
According to the report, the emerging technology-led sectors, including technology, media and telecom (TMT), AI and advanced manufacturing, are expected to grow slightly faster at around 26 per cent annually.
Their share of the new-age economy is projected to rise from about 31-33 per cent. The collective profit pool of new-age companies turned positive in FY25 at $1.4 billion, according to the report. However, profitability remains heavily concentrated in banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI).
Consumer brands are reaching scale faster, helped by the expansion of direct-to-consumer (D2C) channels and quick commerce. The average time taken to reach ₹100 crore in revenue fell from 6.8 years for brands founded in 2016 to 3.4 years for the 2020 cohort.
The time required to reach ₹500 crore in revenue also halved, from 7.9 years to four years. Redseer expects the number of new-age consumer brands with revenue above ₹100 crore to rise from roughly 90 in FY22 and 230 in FY26 to around 500 by FY31.
Scaling beyond the ₹500-crore mark remains a challenge, however, owing to the need for deep offline distribution networks, modern trade capabilities and working capital infrastructure. Of the approximately 110 brands founded since 2016 that crossed ₹100 crore in revenue, only 26 have surpassed ₹500 crore, while eight have crossed ₹800 crore.
Private market funding for new-age companies is projected to increase 25 per cent year-on-year to $17 billion in calendar year 2026. Growth is expected to be driven mainly by investments in BFSI, TMT and AI, which together accounted for 60-65 per cent of deal value this year.
By calendar year 2030, total public and private fundraises for new-age companies are expected to reach $50 billion annually, comprising $35 billion in private funding and $15 billion through public listings. Redseer expects new-age companies to account for about 40 per cent of all Indian initial public offering proceeds by CY30, up from 25 per cent at present.
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