Like it or not, startup ecosystems are partly defined by how big their unicorn herds are; in other words, by how many companies have hit the billion-dollar valuation mark.
In Europe, the unicorn count is steadily growing. In 2020 so far, at least 10 new unicorns have been ‘born’. There are plenty more fast-growing startups likely to join the list soon.
Others will leave: Europe has also seen several IPOs this year, including The Hut Group (although Covid has slowed things here) — and is likely to see many more in 2021.
To help you keep track of it all, Sifted’s team has compiled a list of Europe’s unicorns using data from European Startups and our own research. We’ll update the list whenever a new company hits the billion-dollar valuation.
To make the list, companies must hit the following criteria: headquartered in Europe; founded in 2000 or later; private (not listed or acquired). Please let us know if we’ve missed any!
Key
Year founded
Amount raised
Last funding round
Valuation
Employees
Arrival
transportation / vehicle production
arrival.com/London, United Kingdom
2015
€210m
GROWTH EQUITY
€3bn
500-1000
Oxford Nanopore
biotech / health
nanoporetech.com/Oxford, United Kingdom
2015
€723m
GROWTH EQUITY
€2bn
100-500
CMR Surgical
robotics / medical devices
cmrsurgical.com/Impington, United Kingdom
2014
€351m
SERIES C
€1bn
100-500

Darktrace
security / cybersecurity
darktrace.com/en/Cambridge, United Kingdom
2013
€210m
SERIES E
€1.5bn
1000-5000
OakNorth
fintech / banking / mortgages & lending
oaknorth.comLondon, United Kingdom
2013
€783m
LATE VC
€2bn
500-1000
Gousto
food / food logistics & delivery
gousto.co.ukLondon, United Kingdom
2012
€189m
SERIES F
€1bn
100-500
AUTO1 Group
transportation / ecommercce
auto1-group.com/Berlin, Germany
2012
€1,002m
CONVERTIBLE
€3bn
1000-5000
ContentSquare
marketing / enterprise software
contentsquare.com/Paris, France
2012
€302m
SERIES D
€1bn
500-1000
Deliveroo
food logistics & delivery /
deliveroo.co.ukLondon, United Kingdom
2012
€1,303m
SERIES G
€2bn
5000+
Improbable
gaming / enterprise software
improbable.io/London, United Kingdom
2012
€547m
GROWTH EQUITY
€2bn
500-1000
MessageBird
telecom / enterprise software
messagebird.comAmsterdam, Netherlands
2011
€236m
SERIES C
€3bn
100-500
FlixMobility
transportation / mobility
global.flixbus.com/Munich, Germany
2011
€510m
LATE VC
€2bn
1000-5000

Greensill
fintech / financial management solutions
greensill.com/London, United Kingdom
2011
€1,550m
GROWTH EQUITY
€3bn
500-1000

Deposit Solutions
fintech /
deposit-solutions.com/de/main/Hamburg, Germany
2011
€171m
SERIES E
€1bn
100-500
OVO Energy
energy / energy providers
ovoenergy.com/Bristol, United Kingdom
2008
€240m
GROWTH EQUITY
€1bn
1000-5000
Infobip
marketing / enterprise software
infobip.comLondon, United Kingdom
2006
€182m
SERIES A
€1bn
1000-5000
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