Table of Content



1. OVERVIEW
1.1. Executive Summary
1.1.1. The US continues to lead in share of unicorns
1.1.2. China is fast becoming a global unicorn hotspot
1.1.3. African unicorns are emerging slowly but much development is needed to create more
1.1.4. UK is gaining but remains far behind United States

2. THE US CONTINUES TO LEAD IN SHARE OF UNICORNS
2.1. Current trends in the US environment is very beneficial
2.2. Willingness to take risks has driven proliferation of unicorns in the US
2.2.1. Seed stage funding is on the decline
2.3. Silicon Valley stands out, but other states are catching up
2.4. Going public can bring challenges
2.5. Business friendly environment fosters unicorns
2.6. Rise of the decacorn

3. CHINA IS FAST BECOMING A GLOBAL UNICORN HOTSPOT
3.1. The Chinese government has encouraged start-up investment
3.2. The US invest heavily in Chinese start-ups
4.1. China’s venture Capital market close to overtaking the US
4.1.1. SoftBank Group’s Vision Fund fuels Chinese start-ups
4.1. BAT lead unicorn investment
4.2. Shenzhen branded the ?Chinese Silicon Valley’
5.1.1. Chinas Greater Bay Area aims to drive future unicorn growth
5.2. Regulations and trade tensions slow start-up investment

6. AFRICAN UNICORNS ARE EMERGING SLOWLY BUT MUCH DEVELOPMENT IS NEEDED TO CREATE MORE
6.1. Reasons for lack of African unicorns are predicated on fundamental economic issues
6.1.1. Despite talk of which company will be the next African unicorn, the argument that attention should be elsewhere is gathering strength
6.2. Startup scenes in Africa are growing and attracting venture capital investment, helping companies to grow
6.3. Venture capital funding in Africa is increasing, helping the creation of unicorns
6.3.1. Number of potential unicorns is increasing but assessing chances of success is very difficult

7. UK IS GAINING BUT REMAINS FAR BEHIND UNITED STATES
7.1. Risk averse culture in United Kingdom has hindered growth of unicorns to the benefit of the United States
7.2. United Kingdom is developing unicorns at a quicker rate than the rest of Europe
7.2.1. Need to produce a ?Titan’ is more pressing now unicorn numbers are rising
7.2.2. Interpretation of unicorns means headline numbers are not quite as good as claimed
7.3. Venture capital funds are becoming more enthusiastic
7.3.1. Access to funds for startups is getting better, helping to close gap to United States

8. POINTS OF INTEREST

9. APPENDIX
9.1. Sources
9.2. Further reading

10. ASK THE ANALYST

11. ABOUT MARKETLINE



List of Figures


Figure 1: Top 5 metro’s by share of US total (2016-2017)
Figure 1: Lyft annual revenue and earnings (million $)
Figure 1: Uber co-founder Garret Camp is a Canadian immigrant
Figure 1: Total US unicorns as of end of Q4
Figure 2: Top BAT-backed unicorns in 2018 by post-valuation ($B)
Figure 1: World Bank, Ease of doing business index position of top 10 African nations
Figure 1: President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari
Figure 1: Q1 2018 source of startup funding in Nigeria
Figure 1: Percentage of venture capital funds locally run and headquartered in Africa
Figure 1: Top five leading US unicorns by value ($bn)
Figure 1: boohoo share price history
Figure 1: Top five leading UK unicorns by value ($bn)


List of Tables


Table 1: Highest valued unicorns globally