Romania lags behind Croatia and the Baltics in terms of VC funding per capita

UiPath, the Romania-born tech startup turned unicorn in 2018, is now leading in the top of the most valuable players in the region - it is estimated at EUR 27.6 bln, according to a report by Google for Startups, Atomico and Dealroom.co.

In the same year, Romania’s biggest online retailer, eMAG, was as well ranked as a unicorn.

But Romania’s tech startup ecosystem still lags behind those in Croatia and the Baltics in terms of venture capital (VC) funding per capita.

Romania is responsible for the second-largest combined startup value created in the region since 2000, but the vast majority of that comes from just one company: UiPath, which listed in the US earlier this year at a valuation of USD 35 bln.

The region has now created 34 unicorns, up from just six in 2015, with Poland topping the list (8), followed by Estonia (6), the Czech Republic (4) and Ukraine (4).

With EUR 116 per capita, Romania ranks above all the other countries in the region (except the four mentioned above) and is not far from Croatia (EUR 133 per capita) as well.

Another good news is that the flow of VC funding to the region is strengthening. Venture capital investment in CEE founded companies has already smashed previous records, with EUR 4.0B bln already raised in 2021. At this pace, 2021 would see a growth of 2.3x from the previous all-time high in 2019.

(Photo: Tashatuvango | Dreamstime.com)