Tech

Unicorns not so rare in Brazil anymore

Fintech Neon became the latest Brazilian startup to cross the hallowed USD 1 billion valuation threshold, making it the country's latest unicorn. And there are many more firms poised to join the select club

Unicorns not so rare
Illustration: EamesBot/Shutterstock

Unicorn companies are named as such because of the perceived rarity of a privately-held startup reaching a valuation of USD 1 billion. But as time goes on, these “mythical creatures” are becoming more and more common, even in Brazil. The country has already recorded its first unicorn of 2022, when fintech Neon crossed the USD 1 billion threshold after receiving bumper investment from Spanish bank BBVA. 

Ride-hailing app 99 became Brazil’s first unicorn in January 2018, being joined later that year by fintech Nubank and delivery startup iFood. Three years later, the number of startups to reach unicorn status over the course of a year had almost quadrupled, with Brazil adding 11 companies to its list of billionaire startups in 2021. 

Including Neon, the country has now produced 25 unicorns, though 99, Nubank, and e-commerce platform Vtex have lost that status after going public. Fintechs PagSeguro and Stone and edtech Arco are not classified as unicorns, despite their massive valuations. They crossed the USD 1...

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