Amid reports that the United States dominates the global entrepreneurial landscape with 72,560 startup businesses, it can be revealed that of the 50 million startups emerging globally each year, a disheartening 90% ultimately succumb to the challenges of business. Despite this, as of July 2023, a remarkable 1,220 startup companies have attained a valuation of $1 billion, earning them the coveted title of unicorn companies.
Interested in this, the experts at FOREX.com were keen to uncover which countries and industries are most prolific in producing unicorn companies through data obtained and analyzed from CB Insights.
Key findings:
- Media & entertainment and insurance startups have the lowest valuation of unicorn companies globally
- The US dominates with 668 unicorn companies, with a collective valuation of over $2 trillion ($2.64 trillion)
- 515 companies reached unicorn status in 2021, compared to just 261 in 2022 (-41%)
The industries with the most unicorn companies in the US:
In the United States, mirroring the global landscape, the industries with the highest number of unicorn companies are enterprise tech (259) and financial services (107), ranking first and second respectively. Databricks leads the way for US companies in the enterprise tech sector, while Stripe claims the top position in financial services.
Noticeably, in the US, the industry with the third most unicorn companies is the healthcare and life sciences sector (93), with a combined valuation of over $215 billion. Devoted Health emerges as the American company with the highest valuation in the healthcare industry, securing the 26th position among all unicorns with an individual valuation of $12.6 billion.
The industries with the most unicorn companies worldwide:
The enterprise tech industry dominates unicorn companies, boasting a total of 377 with a combined valuation of just over $1 trillion. The highest-valued company within the enterprise tech sector is Canva, with an impressive valuation of $40 billion. Canva has the fifth highest valuation out of all global unicorn companies. Enterprise tech is projected to maintain its position as a leading industry, surpassing growth and total valuation projections by 2027.
Within the financial services sector, 216 companies boast a combined valuation of $706 billion. Stripe claims the title for the highest-valued company within financial services, valued at $50 billion, and ranks fourth overall. Despite having the same number of unicorn companies, those in the financial services industry have a 10% higher total valuation than the consumer and retail industry.
The consumer and retail industry ranks third (216), with a collective valuation of over $631 billion. The unicorn with the highest valuation within this industry is SHEIN, valued at $66 billion, ranking third globally. SHEIN is valued at $8.17b higher than the combined valuation of all 27 unicorn companies in the insurance industry ($57.83b).
