Few, if any, start-ups can claim the prestigious definition of "unicorns" - newly established, very fast-growing companies with a valuation in excess of $1 billion. Even fewer companies will ever reach the $10 billion mark in terms of value to qualify as "decacorns". Like every year, Visual Capitalist has produced an infographic at the end of 2021 on the start-ups (or former start-ups) that have reached this coveted milestone.
Interestingly, some of decacorns are little-known companies making quiet but impactful progress in the areas of software development, healthcare and automotive. Others are already established market leaders, such as aerospace manufacturer SpaceX and video game developer and publisher Epic Games.
In total, there are more than 800 unicorn start-ups worldwide. By contrast, there were only 35 decacorns at the end of 2021, and Venture Capitalist's analysis focuses on these.
Many of the most valuable start-ups are already giants in their fields. For example, social media company Bytedance is the developer of video networking platform Douyin and its international version, TikTok, and has amassed a valuation of $140 billion. The financial services and payment software company Stripe rose from a valuation of $36bn to $95bn, thanks to the increasing adoption of contactless payment solutions spurred by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Less universally known names such as Swedish fintech Klarna ($45.6bn) and Australian graphic design platform Canva ($40.0bn) are also well known in their respective fields. Some of these companies are entering the stock market, such as electric vehicle manufacturer and Tesla competitor Rivian, which already boasted a valuation of $27.6 billion before listing on NASDAQ.
The breakdown of the world's biggest start-ups by sector shows that technology is still king in most investor circles. More than 77% of unicorns valued above $10 billion operate directly in technology-related fields, primarily in fintech. And many of the unicorns rated in non-tech fields are still underlying high-tech companies. One example is the Indonesian logistics company J&T Express, one of the few unicorns not directly related to technology but which nonetheless owes its success to highly sophisticated automated sorting systems.
J&T Express is also one of the few companies not from the US or China, which together account for over 70% of the 35 largest start-ups. The UK (3) was the next most frequently listed location, while Australia, Brazil, Germany, India and Sweden count one unicorn company each.
The good news is that with valuations constantly fluctuating and technological breakthroughs always just around the corner, the next unicorn could really come from any sector or any country.