London is home to 24 unicorn companies and you can find them all in this article.
How do unicorn startups emerge?
How are they formed?
What does it take to become one of the Unicorn startups?
These are all questions many entrepreneurs ask themselves when building their companies.
Here are the 24 startups in London – Gett and Cazoo included – which have become unicorns.
Babylon Health is a new AI-driven app that uses technology to make medical advice more accessible and affordable
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$2.00
B (
August 2019
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2013
Founders:
Ali Parsa
Industries:
Artificial Intelligence, Health Care, Health Diagnostics, Hospital, Mobile Apps
Number of employees:
1,000-5,000
Funding Amount:
$631,090,847
Number of funding rounds:
4
Number of investors:
5
BenevolentAI is a biopharmaceutical company with an extensive focus on the development of machine learning technologies to accelerate drug discovery.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$1.00
B (
June 2015
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2013
Founders:
Brent Gutekunst, Ivan Griffin, Ken Mulvany, Michael Brennan
Industries:
Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, Biotechnology, Machine Learning, Neuroscience
Number of employees:
50-100
Funding Amount:
$292,000,000
Number of funding rounds:
3
Number of investors:
6
Blockchain.com is the premier digital asset platform, the foundational technology behind cryptocurrencies like bitcoin and ether.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$5.20
B (
February 2021
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2011
Founders:
Benjamin Reeves, Nicolas Cary, Peter Smith
Industries:
Bitcoin, Blockchain, Cryptocurrency, FinTech, Trading Platform
Number of employees:
500-1,000
Funding Amount:
$490,000,000
Number of funding rounds:
6
Number of investors:
26
Cazoo is an online used car marketplace that enables you to buy, finance, and rent used cars more conveniently.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$2.50
B (
June 2020
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2018
Founders:
Alexander Edward Chesterman
Industries:
Automotive, Car Sharing, E-Commerce, Rental
Number of employees:
250-500
Funding Amount:
$1,556,961,261
Number of funding rounds:
8
Number of investors:
20
Checkout.com's API allows businesses to integrate a seamless checkout experience across platforms.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$15.00
B (
May 2019
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2012
Founders:
Guillaume Pousaz
Industries:
E-Commerce, FinTech, Payments, Transaction Processing
Number of employees:
1,000-5,000
Funding Amount:
$830,000,000
Number of funding rounds:
3
Number of investors:
8
Como is the next-generation, end-to-end customer engagement solution that facilitates effortless customer experience management across multi-channel touch points.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$1.30
B (
July 1905
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2006
Founders:
Dror Erez, Gaby Bilczyk, Ronen Shilo
Industries:
Big Data, Cloud Computing, Enterprise Software, Loyalty Programs, Online Portals, Point of Sale, Small and Medium Businesses
Number of employees:
50-100
Funding Amount:
$109,800,000
Number of funding rounds:
3
Number of investors:
2
Gett is the company that provides a comprehensive technology platform for corporate ground transportation (GTM) management.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$1.50
B (
May 2016
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2010
Founders:
Dave Waiser, Roi More
Industries:
B2B, Enterprise Software, SaaS, Software, Transportation
Number of employees:
500-1,000
Funding Amount:
$928,000,000
Number of funding rounds:
12
Number of investors:
11
Global Switch is a multi-tenant colocation and cloud hosting provider with a large scale network of carrier and cloud neutral data centres.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$11.10
B (
December 2016
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
1998
Founders:
Andy Ruhan
Industries:
Data Center, Real Estate, Wholesale
Number of employees:
250-500
Funding Amount:
£4,925,000,000
Number of funding rounds:
3
Number of investors:
4
Gousto, an online meal-kit service, automates the entire process from combining ingredients to delivery.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$1.00
B (
November 2020
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2012
Founders:
James Carter, Timo Boldt
Industries:
E-Commerce, Food and Beverage, Food Delivery, Food Processing, Subscription Service
Number of employees:
500-1,000
Funding Amount:
$211,295,692
Number of funding rounds:
12
Number of investors:
12
Greensill Capital provides unsecured, asset-based loans to businesses worldwide.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$4.00
B (
July 2018
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2011
Founders:
Jason Austin, Lex Greensill
Industries:
Commercial Lending, Finance, Financial Services, FinTech, Lending
Number of employees:
1,000-5,000
Funding Amount:
$1,705,000,000
Number of funding rounds:
3
Number of investors:
2
Hopin is a virtual event platform that creates live online business and social networking experiences. Their events are professional, organized, and open to everyone who has the interest to learn new things.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$5.65
B (
November 2020
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2019
Founders:
Johnny Boufarhat
Industries:
Events, Meeting Software, Social Network, Video Conferencing
Number of employees:
250-500
Funding Amount:
$571,440,518
Number of funding rounds:
5
Number of investors:
20
Hyperion offers a wide range of risk management solutions to businesses and individuals across the globe.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$5.00
B (
September 2020
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
1994
Founders:
David Howden
Industries:
Auto Insurance, Insurance, Retail, Wholesale
Number of employees:
500-1,000
Funding Amount:
$1,900,000,000
Number of funding rounds:
4
Number of investors:
4
Improbable is a games technology company that enables developers to build virtual worlds for games and simulations of any scale.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$2.00
B (
May 2017
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2012
Founders:
Herman Narula, Peter Lipka, Rob Whitehead
Industries:
Gamification, Gaming, Information Technology, Software, Virtual World
Number of employees:
500-1,000
Funding Amount:
$604,094,860
Number of funding rounds:
6
Number of investors:
10
Infobip is a simple and affordable platform for businesses to communicate with their customers in real time across multiple channels.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$1.00
B (
July 2020
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2006
Founders:
Izabel Jelenic, Roberto Kutic, Silvio Kutic
Industries:
Enterprise Software, Messaging, Telecommunications
Number of employees:
1,000-5,000
Funding Amount:
$200,000,000
Number of funding rounds:
1
Number of investors:
1
Lendable is a data-driven lending platform that provides decision-making tools to lenders.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$1
B (
March 2021
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2014
Founders:
Jakob Schwarz, Martin Kissinger, Paul Pamment, Victoria van Lennep
Industries:
Banking, Financial Services, Payments
Number of employees:
50-100
Funding Amount:
$1,336,304,367
Number of funding rounds:
8
Number of investors:
17
Monzo is a digital-only bank that caters to users with busy lives. It is perfect for people who want a straightforward banking experience with affordable fees and full transparency.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$1.61
B (
October 2018
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2015
Founders:
Gary Dolman, Jason Bates, Jonas Huckestein, Paul Rippon, Tom Blomfield
Industries:
Banking, Financial Services, FinTech, Marketplace
Number of employees:
1,000-5,000
Funding Amount:
£434,678,108
Number of funding rounds:
19
Number of investors:
33
OakNorth develops and delivers intelligent decision-making tools that can transform and enhance the lending process.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$2.80
B (
October 2017
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2015
Founders:
Joel Perlman, Rishi Khosla
Industries:
Artificial Intelligence, Banking, Finance, Financial Services, FinTech, Lending
Number of employees:
500-1,000
Funding Amount:
$1,041,034,147
Number of funding rounds:
8
Number of investors:
9
Octopus Energy works to design, engineer, and install the most efficient microgeneration plants providing clean energy for businesses of any size.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$2.06
B (
December 2020
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2015
Founders:
Greg Jackson, James Eddison, Stuart Jackson
Industries:
Energy Efficiency, GreenTech, Renewable Energy
Number of employees:
500-1,000
Funding Amount:
$574,000,000
Number of funding rounds:
3
Number of investors:
2
PPRO’s mission is to enable consumers, merchants and financial institutions to send and receive payments with ease.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$1.00
B (
January 2021
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2006
Founders:
Philipp Nieland, Tobias Schreyer
Industries:
Finance, Financial Services, FinTech, Payments
Number of employees:
250-500
Funding Amount:
$370,000,000
Number of funding rounds:
7
Number of investors:
10
Rapyd is creating a payments platform that integrates with any app, to deliver local payment methods in one service.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$2.50
B (
December 2019
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2016
Founders:
Arik Shtilman, Arkady Karpman, Omer Priel
Industries:
Financial Services, FinTech, Mobile Payments, Payments
Number of employees:
100-250
Funding Amount:
$470,000,000
Number of funding rounds:
5
Number of investors:
16
Revolut is a financial services company that provides payment solutions to businesses and individuals.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$5.50
B (
April 2018
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2014
Founders:
Nikolay Storonsky, Vlad Yatsenko
Industries:
Banking, Customer Service, Financial Services, FinTech, Mobile Payments
Number of employees:
1,000-5,000
Funding Amount:
$905,469,790
Number of funding rounds:
13
Number of investors:
40
Starling Bank is a mobile-only bank for personal and business current accounts.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$1.95
B (
March 2021
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2014
Founders:
Anne Boden
Industries:
Banking, Financial Services, FinTech
Number of employees:
500-1,000
Funding Amount:
$922,023,934
Number of funding rounds:
10
Number of investors:
11
Wise, previously known as TransferWise, is a global money transfer service that lets you send money abroad without hidden fees.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$5.00
B (
January 2015
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2011
Founders:
Kristo Kaarmann, Taavet Hinrikus
Industries:
Finance, Financial Services, FinTech, Payments
Number of employees:
1,000-5,000
Funding Amount:
$1,091,682,792
Number of funding rounds:
12
Number of investors:
36
Zego is revolutionising the self-employed insurance industry with a suite of products that offer competitive rates and unparalleled service.
Details of the startup:
Valuation:
$1.10
B (
March 2021
)
Country:
United Kingdom
City:
London
Started in:
2016
Founders:
Harry Franks, Sten Saar, Stuart Kelly
Industries:
Auto Insurance, Commercial Insurance, Insurance, InsurTech
Number of employees:
250-500
Funding Amount:
$201,738,891
Number of funding rounds:
6
Number of investors:
12
