The Shape Of Things To Come

The digital revolution will give indian stock indices their own new-age powerhouses

- Udayan Mukherjee

Can you guess the names of the six most valuable US companies in 2004? They were GE, Exxon, Microsoft, Pfizer, Citi, and Walmart. That’s right, not a single FAANG stock. Today, the top names are Apple, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Facebook, and Tesla. The old order has made way for the new. Prepare yourselves, for such a change is coming to India, sooner than you think. The journey has begun.

Less than 1 per cent of India’s market capitalisation is accounted for by digital- or internet-based enterprises. In the US, this number is 40 per cent. But, we already have 60 unicorns here and that number will probably grow to 200 by 2025. And that is a conservative estimate. Will we have our own FAANGs then? Sure, but maybe by another name. Seeing the headiness around start-up valuations, it’s tempting to christen them the BOOZ-INGUPs—after Byju’s, Ola, OYO, Zomato, InMobi, Nykaa, Grofers, upgrade, and Paytm. More listings may pave the way for better acronyms, but the trend is unmistakable—of more and more digital enterprises rising in size and stature, to replace the stars of yesteryears.