【Dealroom】2024北欧创新报告英文版_25页_8mb

Nordics Innovation Report 2024 Summary

Core Content

The Nordics innovation report for 2024 highlights the region's continued growth and resilience in the startup ecosystem despite a challenging year. The combined enterprise value of Nordic startups has increased significantly over the past decade, reaching $552B as of 2024, a 16x increase from 2014. The number of unicorns has also grown from 9 in 2014 to 82 in 2024, with healthtech and fintech being the leading industries in terms of unicorn count.

Main Points

• Startup Ecosystem Growth:
  The Nordic startup ecosystem has grown 16 times over the last 10 years, with a combined enterprise value of $552B as of 2024.

• VC Investment Trends:

  • Nordic startups raised $3.8B in VC investment in 2024, with a forecast of $5.8B for the full year.
  • This brings the region back to pre-pandemic levels, despite a decrease in late-stage megarounds.
  • Two-thirds of VC investment in the Nordics comes from international investors, the highest share to date.
  • Energy remains the most funded sector, raising $1.2B in 2024.
  • Enterprise software has also surpassed 2023 VC investment levels.

• Unicorn Growth and Exits:

  • The Nordics have produced 82 unicorns, including recent additions such as Kerecis and Bonesupport.
  • The region is on track for over 100 VC-backed exits in 2024, with most exits being through strategic M&A to large corporations and Private Equity.

• Debt Financing:

  • Debt is a significant capital source for Nordic startups, especially for capital-intensive hardware businesses.
  • Notable debt rounds in 2024 include $5B for Northvolt and €4.2B for H2 Green Steel.

• Investor Activity:

  • Nordic VCs have raised $1.6B in new funds so far in 2024, with a total of over $10B raised in the last five years.
  • Major new fund launches include Creandum VII ($550M), Norrsken Fund II ($342M), and Sandwater Fund I ($134M).

Key Sectors and Segments

• Energy:

  • The most funded sector in 2024, with $1.2B raised.
  • Key segments include batteries, hydrogen, and solar.
  • Startups like H2 Green Steel and Heart Aerospace have raised $100M+ rounds.

• Enterprise Software:

  • Raised more than $500M in 2024, showing strong growth potential.

• Industrial Technology:

  • Startups such as H2 Green Steel and 1X Technologies have raised $100M+ rounds.

• Urban Tech and Advanced Materials:

  • These are emerging innovation segments in the Nordics, indicating diversification in the startup landscape.

Geographic and Country Insights

• Sweden has raised the most VC investment in the Nordics so far in 2024, with $3.8B in total.
• Denmark and Norway are among the top 10 European ecosystems by VC investment, while Finland ranks 13th and Iceland ranks 21st.

Investor Landscape

• International Investors:
  • The US and UK are the largest foreign sources of capital for Nordic startups.
  • The share of non-Nordic investors in VC rounds has reached a record high, with two-thirds of all investment coming from abroad.

Methodology

• Startups:

  • Defined as companies designed to grow fast, generally VC-investable businesses.
  • Only companies founded since 1990 are included in the report.

• Unicorns:

  • Startups valued at $1B+ or those that achieved a $1B+ exit through public markets or M&A.
  • A decacorn is a unicorn valued at $10B+.

• Data Sources:

  • Data is aggregated from Dealroom's proprietary database, including public information, user-submitted data, and data engineering.
  • The data is verified and curated through an extensive manual process.

Conclusion

The Nordic startup ecosystem continues to show resilience and growth, with strong performance in VC investment, unicorn creation, and exits. Despite a decline in late-stage megarounds, the region is attracting significant international investment and has a robust debt financing landscape. The future looks promising, with Sweden and Denmark leading in investment and the energy and enterprise software sectors driving much of the growth. The ecosystem is well-positioned to continue its upward trajectory in the coming years.