Want to invest in IT?
A plain-language guide to how technology businesses grow, the ways people invest in them, what the risks really are, and how we can help you build or check an IT product before you put money in.
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Investing in technology companies can make money and can lose money, including everything you put in. No one can promise returns, and no investment in a business is guaranteed or risk-free. Be cautious of anyone, including us, who says otherwise.
This page is general information. It is not investment, legal or tax advice, and it is not an offer to sell shares or to accept deposits. We are an IT services company, not an investment adviser, and nothing here is a recommendation to buy or invest in any company.
Why people look at IT
These are the reasons technology businesses attract attention. They describe opportunity, not a promise of profit.
Software scales
Once built, software can serve one customer or a million with little extra cost per user, so technology companies can grow faster than businesses that need a new shop or factory for every customer. Growth still needs customers who are willing to pay.
Recurring revenue
Many IT businesses earn through subscriptions, licences or maintenance contracts, so income can repeat month after month instead of coming from one-off sales.
India's digital base
Widespread smartphones, low-cost data and digital payments such as UPI mean many Indian businesses and consumers now expect to do things online.
A deep talent pool
India has a large pool of software engineers and a long record of building and exporting IT services, so companies here can build products at competitive cost.
India at a glance
- India is widely described as the world's third-largest startup ecosystem, after the United States and China.
- Government recognition data (DPIIT) counts well over one lakh registered startups, and press estimates put the number of Indian unicorns, startups valued at US$1 billion or more, at roughly a hundred or more, depending on who counts.
- Funding goes up and down. Some reports say Indian startups raised less in the first half of 2026 than a year earlier, and investors now look harder at profits and unit economics than at growth alone.
Ways to invest in IT
Each route has a different level of risk, cost and control. None is risk-free.
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Listed IT companies and funds
Shares in stock-exchange-listed IT companies, or mutual funds and index funds that hold them, are bought through SEBI-registered intermediaries. Listed companies must publish audited results, and you can usually sell on any trading day.
What to weigh: Prices rise and fall every day, and you can lose money. Check that any broker or adviser is registered with SEBI.
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Startups, through angel groups and funds
Early-stage companies are usually funded by angel investors and venture funds, including SEBI-registered alternative investment funds. Some investors hold many small bets in the hope that a few grow large.
What to weigh: Most startups fail or return little. Your money is usually locked in for years and cannot easily be sold.
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Building your own IT product
You can invest in your own idea by having it built as a first working version (an MVP) with a development partner, then testing it with real customers before you spend more.
What to weigh: The return depends on customers paying for it. Build in stages and stop if the evidence is not there.
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Funding or partnering with an IT services business
Some investors back small IT companies directly, as shareholders or business partners.
What to weigh: Ask for written agreements and audited accounts, and take legal advice. A conversation is not an agreement, and no return should be assumed.
Indian startups in the news
These are examples for learning, not recommendations. Figures come from press reports up to mid-2026 and can change. A company's valuation is what investors agreed to pay in a funding round, not the return anyone has received. Several of these companies are private and cannot be bought by the public.
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Rapido
Growth storyRide-hailing and mobility
Started in 2015 as a bike-taxi app and has since widened into autos and other services. In May 2026 it announced a US$240 million funding round at a US$3 billion valuation, led by Prosus with WestBridge Capital and Accel.
What to learn: It served a price-sensitive need that larger rivals were slower to reach. Products like this need dependable rider and driver apps with a real-time back end behind them.
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Pronto
Growth storyInstant home help
Launched in April 2025 by Anjali Sardana to book cleaning and household help in minutes. It raised US$25 million at a US$100 million valuation in March 2026, and press reports say a later extension of US$20 million valued it at about US$200 million. Company executives quoted in the press put daily bookings above 26,000.
What to learn: Growth from one hub to a multi-city service in months shows how much booking software and operations systems matter. It also competes with Snabbit and Urban Company, so continued growth is not certain.
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Zepto
Growth storyQuick commerce
Founded in 2021 to deliver groceries in about ten minutes, and reached a valuation above US$1 billion in 2023.
What to learn: Speed came from software: inventory, routing and store systems working in real time. The model is also capital-hungry and fiercely competitive.
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Razorpay
Growth storyPayments
Founded in 2014 to make it easier for Indian businesses to accept online payments, later adding banking and lending tools for businesses. It became a unicorn in 2020.
What to learn: A developer-friendly product that solved a real integration problem. Payment gateways and APIs are exactly what many business websites and apps need.
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Zerodha
Growth storyStock broking
Founded in 2010 by Nithin Kamath and grown largely without outside venture funding, using technology to keep costs low.
What to learn: Not every good business needs investors. Some grow on their own profits.
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Freshworks
Growth storyBusiness software (SaaS)
Began in Chennai as Freshdesk and listed on Nasdaq in 2021, selling subscription software to companies around the world from India.
What to learn: An Indian-built product sold globally on subscription is the recurring-revenue model in practice.
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Urban Company
Growth storyHome services
Connects customers with home-service professionals and is now listed on Indian stock exchanges.
What to learn: Going public brings audited accounts and regular disclosure, which is a different risk profile from a private startup.
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Dunzo
Cautionary taleDelivery
Began in 2014 as a WhatsApp errand service and raised over US$450 million, then pushed into quick commerce against better-funded rivals. It ceased operations in January 2025, and Reliance Retail reportedly wrote off its investment in full.
What to learn: Fast growth without sustainable unit economics can end badly, even for a well-known and well-funded brand.
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Byju's
Cautionary taleEducation technology
Once valued at about US$22 billion and India's most valuable startup. It ran into cash-flow problems, disputes with lenders and governance concerns, and insolvency proceedings followed.
What to learn: Growth by acquisition, weak transparency and late accounts are warning signs. A high valuation is not proof of value.
What these stories teach
Valuation is not return
A headline valuation is not cash in your hands, and it can fall as easily as it rises.
Unit economics matter
Ask whether each customer or booking makes money after costs, not just whether the numbers are growing.
Governance protects investors
Clear accounts, honest reporting and proper filings separate a healthy company from a hidden problem.
The technology has to work
Apps that crash, slow back ends and insecure code lose customers. Technical quality is part of the business risk.
Checks to make before you invest
Careful checking does not remove risk, but it helps you avoid avoidable losses.
- Confirm the company exists and check its registration and filings with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs
- Ask for audited financial statements and tax filings
- Understand who owns the shares and what you would receive for your money
- Get every agreement in writing and read it with a lawyer
- Check who owns the software, brand and customer data
- Have the technology reviewed by an independent engineer
- Ask how and when you could exit, and what happens if the company fails
- Invest only money you could afford to lose, and spread it across more than one investment
Warning signs
If you see any of these, stop and ask questions.
- Guaranteed, fixed or unusually high returns
- Pressure to decide today or to keep the deal secret
- Requests for cash, or payment to a personal account
- No written agreement, or reluctance to share accounts
- Vague answers about what the business actually sells
- Claims that an investment is risk-free
- Schemes that pay earlier investors with money from new investors
Investing from outside India
If you live outside India, for example in Europe, the United States or Kuwait, investing in an Indian company is governed by India's foreign exchange rules (FEMA) and by the rules of the country you live in, including who may invest, how money must be sent and what must be reported. In India, running unregulated deposit schemes is banned under the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act, 2019. Take advice from a qualified Indian chartered accountant or lawyer, and from an adviser in your own country, before sending any money.
How SS Global can help
We are a technology team, so this is where we can be useful: building products and checking them.
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Technical due diligence
Thinking of investing in an IT company or app? Book an hour and one of our consultants will review the architecture, code quality, security and the team's technical claims, then send a short written summary. This is a technical opinion, not investment advice.
Book consultation -
Build your first version
Turn an idea into a working PHP web app, Java back end or Flutter mobile app in stages, so you can test demand before spending more. We quote scope and price in writing.
Book consultation -
Talk to us about partnering
If you would like to explore investing in or partnering with SS Global, send us a message. We will tell you plainly whether there is a fit. Nothing is agreed until written documents are signed, and we do not promise returns.
Contact us
Business consultation fee: ₹8,000 per hour, billed in INR (about $84, €72 or KD 25.79).
Questions about investing in IT
Can you guarantee returns?
No. Nobody can guarantee returns on a business investment, and we do not.
Is investing in IT safe?
No investment is completely safe. Some carry less risk than others: diversified funds bought through regulated intermediaries are generally less risky than a single early-stage startup. You can reduce risk by spreading your money, checking the facts and investing only what you can afford to lose, but you cannot remove it.
How much money do I need?
It depends on the route. Listed shares and mutual funds can start with small amounts. Angel and venture investments are usually much larger and are often limited to experienced investors. Building your own product with us starts with a scoped written quote.
Are the startups on this page recommendations?
No. They are examples of how Indian technology companies have grown or struggled, drawn from press reports up to mid-2026. Some are private and cannot be bought by the public.
Can people outside India invest in Indian startups?
Often yes, but under India's foreign exchange rules and the rules of your own country. Take professional advice first.
Do you work with investors?
Yes, through technical due diligence sessions, and by building products for founders. We do not manage money or advise on what to buy.
Important: the information on this page is general and is not investment, legal or tax advice, nor an offer or solicitation to buy or sell securities or to accept deposits. All investments carry risk, including loss of the whole amount, and past performance or valuations do not indicate future returns. Company facts are taken from press reports up to mid-2026, may be incomplete or out of date, and should be checked with the companies themselves. See also our terms and conditions.