The combined value of companies on “India’s Top 200 Self-made Entrepreneurs of the Millennia 2025” list stands at INR 42 lakh crore
FinTech BizNews Service
Mumbai, December 17, 2025: IDFC FIRST Private Banking and Hurun India launched the third edition of ‘IDFC FIRST Private & Hurun India’s Top 200 Self-made Entrepreneurs of the Millennia 2025’, a list of the 200 most valuable companies in India founded after the year 2000. These companies are ranked according to their value, defined as market capitalisation for listed companies and valuations for non-listed companies. The cut-off date to arrive at this list was 25th September 2025. This list refers to companies headquartered in India only (state-owned companies and subsidiaries of foreign companies are not included).
The combined value of all companies on the “India’s Top 200 Self-made Entrepreneurs of the Millennia 2025” list stands at INR 42 lakh crore and features entrepreneurs from 51 cities across India. For the first time since the list’s inception, Deepinder Goyal (42), founder of Eternal, has overtaken R K Damani (70) of DMart to claim the No. 1 spot. Bengaluru leads with 88 entrepreneurs, followed by Mumbai with 83 and New Delhi with 52, together accounting for more than half the list. Financial services top the sectors with 47 companies, followed by Software & Services (28), Healthcare (27) and Retail (20). Notably, 189 companies — nearly 95% of the list — have external investors, with the rest bootstrapped.
Mr. Vikas Sharma, Head-Wealth Management & Private Banking, IDFC FIRST Bank said: “India stands tall as one of the world’s leading nations for the quality of its entrepreneurship ecosystem.
The Third Edition of IDFC FIRST Private & Hurun India’s Top 200 Self-made Entrepreneurs of the Millennia 2025 marks another year of celebrating India’s vibrant startup and entrepreneurial journey. This report honours the extraordinary stories of visionary leaders who are reshaping the country’s economic landscape. Their resilience, innovation, and relentless pursuit of excellence reflect the very values we at IDFC FIRST Bank deeply resonate with. Through this publication, we proudly spotlight these trailblazers and reaffirm our commitment to nurturing the entrepreneurial spirit that continues to power India’s growth story.”
Anas Rahman Junaid, Founder and Chief Researcher, Hurun India, said: "The IDFC FIRST Private & Hurun India’s Top 200 Self-made Entrepreneurs of the Millennia 2025 showcases the extraordinary impact of self-made entrepreneurs on India's economy, with a total business value of USD 469 billion—equivalent to a quarter of the value of India’s 300 Most Valuable Family Businesses, despite being founded within the last 25 years compared to the latter's 73-year average age. Five companies founded post-2020 are now collectively valued at INR 78,000 crores. These entrepreneurs are driving growth and contributing to nation-building, with employee benefits increasing from INR 54,000 crores to INR 57,200 crores this year, reflecting their investment in people."
Methodology
The ‘IDFC FIRST Private & Hurun India's Top 200 Self-made Entrepreneurs of the Millennia 2025’ is a list that recognises the 200 most valuable companies based in India, established on or after 2000. This list focuses on the exceptional achievements of self-made Indian entrepreneurs who have built and nurtured the most valuable companies during this millennium. The ranking of this list is in the order of the value of the enterprises created by the Founders and not the net worth of the Founders themselves.
For listed companies, the market cap is based on the price of the respective companies as of the cut-off date. For unlisted companies, Hurun Research’s valuation is based on a comparison with their listed equivalents using prevailing industry multiples such as Price to Earnings, Price to Sales, EV to Sales, and EV to EBITDA. Financial information is from the latest annual reports or audited financial statements.
The Hurun research team has relied on the most recent valuations based on significant funding rounds to maintain consistency in valuations. Additionally, in some instances, we have considered investor-reported markdown valuations to provide a comprehensive analysis.
