Paris, Tuesday 13th April 2021 - Viva Technology has today released its «Top 100 Future Unicorns», a list of the 100 most promising scale-ups in Europe (including UK and Israel). These are companies with high potential in the tech sector, having the attributes to reach a potential valuation of $1 billion or more in the near future. This list was drawn up by Viva Technology, the number one startup and tech event in Europe, in partnership with investment bank GP Bullhound, with contributions from five of the world’s most reputable investment funds: Accel, Balderton, IdInvest, Partech and NorthZone and the support of the Les Echos Group.

Julie Ranty, Managing Director of Viva Technology, said: «This Top100 scale-ups list demonstrates the extraordinary potential of European technology and its influence as a leading technology hub. The pandemic we have been going through for over a year has highlighted the importance of digital and innovation in continuing to move forward, turning challenges into opportunities to evolve many sectors. The challenge now is to support these European digital champions towards success, the main challenges that await them being access to larger rounds of financing, strengthening collaboration with corporates, recruiting talent, international development and the ability to have a positive impact on society.»

Manish Madhvani, Managing Partner of GP Bullhound said: «Entrepreneurs and investors can be proud to have created more than 112 European unicorns since 2000. As we go through one of the most difficult times in our history, the world realises how much we depend on technology and the ambition of visionaries to turn innovative ideas into reality. It is essential to support these leaders by facilitating their access to capital, talent and internationalisation for them to realize their ambitions and ensure their growth. With this list, we see all the potential presented by the European ecosystem.”

Key facts:

• 16 Countries
  • Top 3 countries: UK (24 scale-ups), France (21 scale-ups), Germany (15 scale-ups) in line with the size of ecosystems in these countries
  • Note the solidity of the Nordic ecosystem (Norway, Sweden, Finland) with 18 scale-ups
• The top 3 sectors represented
  • The software/cloud sector tops the list
  • The fintech sector is in second place
  • Followed by the e-commerce sector
• Average total funds raised: EUR156,000,000.
• Average valuation of these scale-ups: EUR377,000,000
• Average growth in the number of employees over the last 12 months: 29%
• Average number of employees: 396

 
The main criteria for the Top 100 Future Tech Unicorns list is:

• Growth and growth potential
• Fundraises
• Growth in employee number
• Geographical distribution in the selection process
• The ability to have a positive impact on society

Viva Technology created a series of conferences this year entirely dedicated to the theme of Scaling Up:

• The most promising scale-ups will be awarded on-stage as part of the «Next Unicorn Award 2021» at the event.
• GP Bullhound, in partnership with Viva Technology, will publish the 2021 edition of its report «Titans of Tech» to coincide with the event. For the eighth consecutive year, this will analyse the growth of the major European technology companies and highlight several key players in its ecosystem with the potential to achieve the status of «Titan» - a valuation of more than 50 billion dollars.
   

 
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