‘Ready for Next MSME Growth Insights Study 2025’ finds that 76% MSMEs target to ramp up investments in Cybersecurity
On this World MSME Day, Vi Business, the enterprise arm of leading telecom operator Vi, releases the third edition of its flagship ‘Ready for Next MSME Growth Insights Study 2025’.
As India’s digital economy accelerates backed by Digital India, Bharat Net and mobile broadband use, smaller businesses are exploring digital tools to enhance operational efficiency and expand their market reach.
‘Ready for Next MSME Growth Insights Study 2025’ reflects this positive shift, revealing a rise in the country’s Digital Maturity Index (DMI), however the digital adoption remains fragmented. With a strong intent, right financial support and access to right advisory support, India’s small businesses are well positioned to accelerate their digital journey.
Commenting on the release of the study, Arvind Nevatia, Chief Enterprise Business Officer, Vodafone Idea Ltd said, “MSMEs in India are clearly moving from digital curiosity to digital commitment — and that’s an encouraging shift. The sharp rise in investment intent around cloud, cybersecurity, and automation shows that small businesses increasingly see technology as a growth enabler, not just a utility. Through Ready for next program, our aim is to celebrate incredible growth journeys of India’s MSMEs – from small towns to global markets, from manual processes to being digital-first enterprises.”
“Through Ready for next program, our aim is to celebrate incredible growth journeys of India’s MSMEs – from small towns to global markets, from manual processes to being digital-first enterprises.”
Arvind Nevatia, Chief Enterprise Business Officer, Vodafone Idea Ltd
Highlights from ‘Ready for Next MSME Growth Insights Study 2025’ include:
South India leads the Digital charge — Telangana Tops National DMI rankings
India’s national Digital Maturity Index (DMI) rose from 56.6 in 2023 to 57.3 in 2024, and 58.0 in 2025. Regionally, the South leads the digital shift (DMI: 62.9), followed by the West (57.4), East (57.1), and North (55.8).
Among individual States, Telangana (DMI: 71.2) has emerged as the digital frontrunner. Hyderabad’s transformation into “Cyberabad” — home to global tech firms, government-backed digital infrastructure, and vibrant startup ecosystems — has significantly boosted MSME digital adoption. Kerala (63.7) follows, leveraging its high digital literacy and strong services sector.
Maharashtra (59.2) ranks third, supported by Mumbai’s financial services base and Pune’s IT and industrial ecosystem.
Digital Investment is on the rise; Cloud and Cybersecurity gain importance
Digital maturity remains uneven across sectors, but the study reveals a sharp rise in investment intent across the board. Professional Services tops the list of sectors increasing digital transformation budgets, followed by Retail, Logistics, Transportation, Media and Entertainment, Manufacturing, Telecom, Agriculture, Financial Services, and Healthcare. Encouragingly, 72% of MSMEs plan to increase cloud spending, and 76% have prioritized cybersecurity as a response to rising cyber threats.
Digital Leadership:Gender Parity Shines Through
Women entrepreneurs (DMI: 57.4) are closing the gap with men (DMI: 57.7) and even leading in cloud and security uptake in niche sectors like Education and IT though on a small base.
Entrepreneurs aged 40–60 lead the pack (DMI: 64.0), showing that being digital savvy is no longer just the domain of younger founders (DMI: 57).
Digital maturity is growing, but just 12% of MSMEs are fully digitalized, adoption remains fragmented
The study shows a steady increase in Digital Maturity with the country’s DMI increasing to 58.0 in 2025. However, it also reveals that only 12% of MSMEs have reached full digital maturity, indicating that adoption remains fragmented.
While digital tools are being explored across sectors, critical gaps remain in areas like customer engagement technologies and internal collaboration platforms. This signals that intent is rising faster than execution, especially among micro and small businesses, where financial capacity and advisory support continue to be barriers.
A Crucial Challenge to Digital Adoption
While awareness and intent are rising, the pace of digital adoption is still closely tied to financial capacity. The study finds that MSMEs with higher turnover — typically in the Rs 50– Rs 100 crore+ range — report significantly greater digital maturity, as they are better positioned to invest in advanced tools across cloud, automation, and customer engagement.
In contrast, younger or smaller MSMEs, despite being digitally aware, continue to make measured, phased investments due to budget constraints.
Vi Business Ready forNext is certified as India’s largest digital advisory for MSMEs by CyberMedia Research (CMR) and has witnessed participation by over 2 lakh MSMEs across 15,000 pin codes and 16 sectors in the past 3 years.
