British unicorns spawn more new startups than anywhere in Europe – UKTN

British unicorns have supported the founding of more startups than any other European country, fresh research has found, highlighting Britain’s continued dominance in the tech sector. 

Firms worth more than $1bn today have collectively spawned 393 new businesses in the past 25 years, according to figures from Accel. 

It’s common practice in tech for startup founders to cut their teeth as staff at established businesses before striking out on their own, from Steve Jobs’ stint at Atari to Bill Gates time at Honeywell. 

But among Europe’s VC-backed unicorns, it’s companies based in the UK that have nurtured the most startup founders, data from Accel and Dealroom show. 

In a study looking at the trend across European and Israeli companies, British firms came out on top, ahead of Sweden, Germany and France. 

Though Sweden’s Klarna and Spotify cultivated the most new startups – 66 and 61 respectively – the combined impact of British unicorns towered above. 

This was in particular down to London firms, which alone accounted for 327 new startups. 

The top London unicorns cited in the study were Deliveroo with 53 startups, Revolut with 46, Wise with 30 and Monzo with 23. 

Of the list of 26 unicorns that were found to have produced more than 20 startups, only one British company from outside of London appeared, Edinburgh-based Skyscanner, with 23 startups created including electric courier startup Packfleet. 

“Back in 2000, Europe’s tech ecosystem was nascent. However, 25 years on, our data highlights the vibrant tech ecosystem that exists today and how the network effects that Silicon Valley has long benefited from are now at work across Europe and Israel,” said Accel partner Harry Nelis. 

“Beyond repeat founders, teams with experience across product, engineering, and management have also been on the startup journey before, and are applying their insights and learnings to building the next generation of businesses set up for long-term success.” 

The study also found that the majority of tech startups founded by former staff of unicorns were based in the same city, elevating successful regions to tech hubs, which further draw in new talent and new would-be founders. 

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