India takes over China for number of fintech deals in Q2
India has overtaken China as the leading hub in Asia for fintech investment for the first time after a major drop-off of deals in China, according to a CB Insights report.
Fintech deals in China fell 81% in Q2, securing just 15 in total, whilst India skated past with 23 VC-backed deals, but China still secured $25 million more than India in overall funding.
The slowdown of fintech investment in China seems to be a result of what investors have called the ‘capital winter’, which has seen more determined government efforts to reduce financial risk after uncertainty surrounding big Chinese tech companies.
There has also been an absence of ‘mega deals’ since last year in China, according to a KPMG report earlier this month.
Co-founder of Shanghai-based start-up mltrons, Raheel Ahmad, told technode that investors consider young start-ups in China among the riskiest prospects for funding.
“What it has done is make entrepreneurs work harder to get to the seed round,” says Ahmad. “AI investors in China are not just looking for an idea to invest in. Now they are looking for a viable business.”
The CB Insights report concludes that the entirety of Asia’s fintech sector has seen near-historic lows in investment activity, despite the wider world’s fintech funding growing steadily.
