Pre-Budget Expectations: Startup Leaders Share Insights on the Interim Budget 2024

• ByStartupStory     |    January 11, 2024

As India anticipates the Interim Budget 2024, founders and leaders from various sectors have shared their expectations and insights, providing a comprehensive view of the country’s economic landscape. From the startup ecosystem to digital commerce, women’s health, education, and the automotive industry, here’s a detailed look at what these industry experts have to say:

Easing the Startup Ecosystem:

Mr. Ankit Agrawal, CEO and Co-Founder of InsuranceDekho, emphasizes the need for continued government support for the startup ecosystem. While acknowledging the ease of starting a business in India, he emphasizes the importance of easing regulations and providing access to newer technologies. Agrawal calls for additional funds, simplified tax rules, and regulatory requirements to encourage entrepreneurship and facilitate growth.

Better Taxation Policy on Investments & ESOPs:

Sunny Garg, Co-founder & CEO of Crib, points out the critical juncture of the Indian startup ecosystem, seeking essential support from the government. Garg anticipates measures such as enhanced funding channels, tax incentives for research and development, and efforts to fortify the regulatory framework. He stresses the need to address ESOP taxation, align capital gains tax on unlisted startup shares with listed shares, and provide incentives tailored for ESG practices.

Venture Capital and Startup Investments:
Siba Panda, Founder and Managing Partner at ValuAble, highlighted the significance of sustained positive financial prospects post the interim budget. Anticipating a shift in sentiment towards startup investments, he emphasized the need for rationalizing capital gains tax to attract more capital into the startup landscape.

On behalf of Rajat Khurana, SVP – Private Markets, Lighthouse Canton India, India has emerged as an important destination for venture capital on the world stage and is ranked currently as the third largest start-up ecosystem in terms of the number of unicorns. We are making a significant mark on the global stage, however, there is still ample scope to make it more conducive for participants from a regulatory standpoint.

Strengthening Digital Commerce Initiatives:

Bhargav Errangi, Founder of POP, highlights the pivotal role India plays on the global stage, ranking as the third-largest startup ecosystem in terms of the number of unicorns. He emphasizes the importance of improving digital commerce initiatives such as UPI, Rupay credit cards, and ONDC. Expectations include introducing incentives for merchants in rural areas, tax incentives for fintech startups, and allocating funds to enhance last-mile connectivity for D2C e-commerce.

Prioritizing Women’s Health:

Nidhi Panchmal, Founder of Arva Health, emphasizes the need for a dedicated focus on women’s health in India’s healthcare system. She calls for substantial investments into comprehensive care facilities tailored for women and suggests potential measures like reducing taxes for services related to women’s wellness. Panchmal also stresses the importance of collaboration between engineering and medical institutions for developing specialized healthcare technologies.

Addressing Banking Concerns:

Akshar Shah, Founder of Fixed Invest, urges the government to consider exempting tax on Fixed Deposits (FDs) up to 5 lakh rupees, aligning with the proposal from the Indian Banking Association. Shah points out the challenges faced by banks in raising low-cost funds and suggests this exemption as a solution.

Education Sector Reforms:

Giridhar L V, CEO and Co-founder of Nuvepro Technologies, calls for a vital shift in budget allocation towards experiential learning and enhancing job readiness within the education sector. He emphasizes incentivizing impactful pedagogical practices and promoting experiential learning through internships and apprenticeships.

Crypto Concerns and Expectations:

Siddharth Ugrankar, Founder of Qila.io, expresses concerns about the blanket tax on cryptocurrency transactions imposed in the previous year’s budget. He hopes for a more favorable regulatory environment, especially in light of global developments such as the potential approval of spot Bitcoin Exchange Trading Fund (ETF).

Laundromat Industry Demands:

Gunjan Taneja, Co-Founder of UClean, advocates for lower GST rates in the upcoming budget. She stresses the importance of recognizing laundromats as a necessity, given their positive impact on employment and resource conservation. Taneja calls for a reevaluation of the GST, ideally reducing it from 18% to 5%, and suggests providing loans or subsidies for the purchase of commercial laundry equipment.

 Green Mobility Emphasis for EVs:

Hari Kiran, Co-Founder and COO of eBikeGo, anticipates insights into the GST landscape for entry-level two-wheelers. He hopes for a continuation of the emphasis on green mobility, including updates on the potential FAME 3 scheme, PLI sops, and revisions to GST for two-wheelers. Kiran emphasizes the need for a comprehensive policy framework for EVs, addressing licensing, safety standards, and insurance norms tailored for electric vehicles.

Cross-Border Commerce and Digital Transformation:

Chirag Taneja, Co-founder, Gokwik:
“As cross-border commerce expands its wings, my expectation from the upcoming budget will be for the government to introduce evolved policies supporting this arena, ensuring India’s strengthened position as a global eCommerce hub. Furthermore, as omnichannel commerce also continues to grow, the budget should introduce policies to support digital-first brands aiming to go the omnichannel way. With technological advancements shaping the ecommerce industry, and rising role of enablers, the budget should also provide support for the growth of the enablers who are now forming the core backend in the growth of these brands. Overall, I believe budget 2024 will have a holistic approach centered around the growth of the ecommerce industry and take #MakeInIndia on a global scale.”

Sameer Singh Jaini, Founder , The DigitalFifth:
“We are expecting the expansion of the Digital Public Infrastructure playing a pivotal role in accelerating the digital transformation of the financial services sector, especially in the hitherto uncharted realm of secured loans. Furthermore, we keenly await the rollout strategy for the Entity DigiLocker, a feature introduced in the previous year’s budget. This initiative is poised to empower MSMEs and corporates by facilitating the seamless sharing of their financial data with banks, ultimately streamlining access to credit. The concept of the Digital Banking Unit (DBU) may be extended beyond physical branches and align with a target percentage of business conducted through digital channels. Given the current challenges related to funding constraints and licensing issues, we are seeking additional support for Fintech companies, which have made a significant impact on the nation’s Digital Agenda. This support may manifest as grants, license issuance, or the relaxation of stringent criteria for collaboration with Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs).”

As the expectations and voices from various sectors converge, the startup and business community awaits the Interim Budget 2024 with optimism, hoping for measures that will catalyze growth, innovation, and sustainability across diverse industries. The mentioned quotes provide a snapshot of the current sentiments, and we will continue to update this article with additional quotes and perspectives from founders, offering an evolving insight into the dynamic expectations of the startup ecosystem. Stay tuned for more updates on Union Budget 2024 expectations from prominent startup leaders.

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