Median salary of Indian unicorn founders rises to Rs 1.5 cr overall in FY23

Female founders had a median salary of Rs 1 cr, while their male counterparts earned a median of Rs 1.8 cr: Study

Indian unicorn founders’ median salary increased in financial year 2022-23 (FY23) to reach Rs 1.5 crore overall, according to a study conducted by PrivateCircle Research, a private market intelligence platform.

Female founders had a median salary of Rs 1 crore, while their male counterparts earned a median of Rs 1.8 crore, the Financial Express (FE) quoted the study as saying.

The study, which examined the top seven sectors based on the count of unicorns from a selection of 114 companies valued at $1 billion or more, found that the media and entertainment sector led with a median founder salary of Rs 3.5 crore. Next were the logistics and edtech sectors, with median salaries of Rs 1.9 crore and Rs 1.6 crore.

While median figures offer insight into founder remuneration trends, the analysis also revealed significant divergences in average salaries. The logistics sector claimed the highest average founder salary at Rs 12.4 crore, potentially influenced by outliers, the report showed.

Gender disparity

The gender disparity was even more noticeable in terms of average salaries. Female founders had an average salary of Rs 1.1 crore, notably less than the average of Rs 8.5 crore for male founders.

The report quoted a PrivateCircle Research spokesperson as saying, “The gender disparity in the Indian startup ecosystem is further exemplified by the lack of women directors at unicorn companies. In a March 2024 analysis, we found that 57 Indian unicorns have zero women on their board.”

Pune: highest average salaries

The research also revealed differences in founder salaries across regions. Pune emerged as the city with the highest average and median founder salaries, reaching Rs 20 crore and Rs 3.7 crore, respectively. This was largely due to FirstCry CEO Supam Maheshwari, whose remuneration in FY23 amounted to Rs 200.7 crore.

However, Maheshwari experienced a 49 per cent decrease in monthly remuneration during the first three quarters of FY24, resulting in a total remuneration of Rs 77.5 crore, according to the company's revised draft red herring prospectus.

The median salary in FY23 demonstrated a significant increase from Rs 1.2 crore in FY22 and around Rs 90 lakh in both FY20 and FY21, said the study.