India Has the 3rd Largest Web3 Talent Pool in the World: NASSCOM-Hashed Emergent Study

[PRESS RELEASE – Bengaluru, Bengaluru, 19th October 2022]

The country is home to over 450 active Web3 startups, including four unicorns

India has over 11% of the global Web3 talent, making it the 3rd largest Web3 talent pool in the world

India’s Web3 potential is currently hamstrung by lack of policy clarity and comprehensive regulatory guidance
As India’s Web3 ecosystem continues to flourish, the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) has released a study focused on the nascent industry on the sidelines of the NASSCOM Product Conclave 2022 (NPC 2022). The study is sponsored by Hashed Emergent, an early-stage Web3 venture fund focused on investments in India and other emerging markets.

The report titled “The India Web3 Startup Landscape, An Emerging Technology Leadership Frontier” is a first-of-its-kind study by NASSCOM to promote a broader understanding of the current state and future potential of the Web3 industry, along with the challenges it faces in the country.

Currently, India has over 11% of the global Web3 talent, making it the 3rd largest Web3 talent pool in the world. The Indian tech industry directly employs nearly 75,000 blockchain professionals today. Further, this talent pool is expected to grow by over 120% in the next 1-2 years. Amid the surging global demand for blockchain developers and specialists, India’s fast-growing talent pool has clear advantages when it comes to expertise development, quick reskilling, and bridging the Web3 demand-supply gap.

The country is home to over 450 active Web3 startups, including four unicorns. With increasing confidence and interest from global investors, investments in Indian Web3 and Web 2.5 startups have also soared. The Indian Web3 ecosystem has raised $1.3 billion in funding through April 2022.

The sector is also delivering global products from India to the world. Over 60% of the Indian Web3 startups have expanded their footprint outside India with headquarters across the globe, though their largest talent base remains in India, putting the country on the global map for Web3 solutions.

Tak Lee, CEO & Managing Partner, Hashed Emergent, said,

“The technology underpinning Web3 has created a whitespace for innovation across domains and geographies. In order to fully understand and grasp the significance of the opportunity at hand, India must develop public awareness about this innovative technology, and the use cases and benefits it offers.”

Majority of the Web3 startups in India are building consumer-facing applications in the areas of decentralized finance (DeFi) and entertainment (gaming, NFT marketplaces, Metaverse). Decentralized communities, based on on-chain coordination mechanisms, are also coming up.

While Web3 holds great promise in various areas, startup founders consider regulatory uncertainty as a critical factor impeding growth. India has remarkable Web3 potential, with adequate talent, investors and addressable market, but is critically hamstrung by lack of policy clarity and comprehensive regulatory guidance.

NASSCOM President Debjani Ghosh said,

“India’s rapid adoption of new-age technologies, its growing startup ecosystem, and large-scale digitally skilled talent potential is cementing the country’s position in the global Web3 landscape. It is heartening to see that industry and government stakeholders in India are taking a very pragmatic approach towards blockchain tech with use-cases being explored in areas ranging from health & safety, finance, enterprise tech, and land registry, to education. While we are only scratching the surface when it comes to emerging tech such as Web3, the Techade will be all about the technology making significant advances leading to innovative use-cases and magnified positive impact at a grassroots level.”

Web3 is a new, decentralized iteration of the World Wide Web powered by blockchain technology. It puts ownership of data, assets and interactions directly in the hands of users without involving a centralized intermediary.

Fueling the Web3 growth in India will be the growing population of the digital-savvy Millennials and Gen Z, who seek greater transparency and autonomy in transactions. About 77% of the country’s population will consist of Millennials and Gen Z by 2030. India will have over 900 million active Internet users by 2025, up from 750 million in 2021. NASSCOM anticipates a 500 million 5G subscriber base by 2027.

While global response to Web3 is still shaping up, India’s growing economy, demographic dividend, and exponential adoption of emerging technologies, across sectors, position the country to become one of the highest growth markets for Web3 globally.

About NASSCOM

NASSCOM is the industry association for the technology sector in India. A not-for-profit organization funded by the industry, its objective is to build a growth-led and sustainable technology and business services sector in the country with over 3,000 members. NASSCOM Insights is the in-house research and analytics arm of NASSCOM generating insights and driving thought leadership for today’s business leaders and entrepreneurs to strengthen India’s position as a hub for digital technologies and innovation. NASSCOM is focused on the development of the technology sector through policy advocacy, and setting up the strategic direction to dominate new frontiers.

About Hashed Emergent

Hashed Emergent is an early stage venture capital fund focused on investing in companies at the intersection of Web2 and Web3 in emerging markets, particularly India. Based in Bangalore, Singapore and Dubai, our team of diverse professionals is dedicated to empowering builders who are enabling the mass adoption of blockchain and accelerating the decentralized future. As a part of Hashed, one of the most active blockchain-focused investment firms in the world, we leverage a broad breadth of experience and a large professional network to offer the best support to our portfolio companies.