According to MISE's quarterly report, there were 14,621 startups in Italy as of July 1, 2022, registering a growth rate of 7.65 percent compared to the same period last year. This is an encouraging figure that makes us look to the future with optimism.
On the occasion of the upcoming edition of Digital Innovation Days, Italy's #1 event on digital and innovation, we have gathered in this article the most important data on the Italian startup scenario: you will find essential information and statistics you need to know, including the amount of startup investments in Italy, the cities where the most startups are located, and some of the most interesting initiatives held in 2022 to contribute to the success of new Made in Italy innovative realities.
How many startups are there in Italy?
There are 14,621 innovative startups in Italy (updated as of July 1, 2022).
Innovative startups, established under Decree Law 179/2012, are those companies that stand out for the development, production and marketing of innovative products and/or services with high technological value. They enjoy specific benefits, including tax credits for the permanent hiring of research and development figures, a fast track for accessing funding and crowdfunding platforms, and a number of bureaucratic simplifications, including exemption from paying stamp duty, annual chamber fees and secretarial fees to the Chamber of Commerce.
Where are startups located in Italy?
The Italian regions with the highest number of startups are Lombardy (3,904, 26.70 percent of the national total), Latium (1,774, 12.1 percent of the total), Campania (1,350, 9.2 percent of the total), Veneto (1,096 startups, 7.5 percent of the total) andEmilia-Romagna (1,094, or 7.5 percent of the total).
On the other side of the ranking, the Italian regions with the fewest number of startups present are Umbria (241), Sardinia (231), Basilicata (152), Molise (83) and Valle d'Aosta (23).
At the provincial level, the top five provinces by number of startups in Italy are Milan (2,737), Rome (1,599), Naples (675), Turin (532) and Bari (362), while the bottom five are Sondrio (13), Grosseto (11), Verbano-Cusio-Ossola (6), Vibo Valentia (6) and Vercelli (4).
How many female-led startups are there?
Another interesting figure is that of female entrepreneurship.
There are 1,962 female-dominated innovative startups, i.e., in which the majority of ownership shares and administrative positions are held by women, accounting for 13.4 percent of the total (data as of July 1, 2022). As for startups that include at least one woman in the corporate structure, the figure rises to 43.4 percent of the total (6,352 startups).
Youth entrepreneurship: how many startups are led by under-35s?
Parallel to female entrepreneurship, another aspect highlighted in the MISE report is that ofyouth entrepreneurship: there are 2,544 startups predominantly under 35, accounting for 17.4 percent of the total, a higher figure than the same incidence in new non-innovative companies (14.3 percent). In contrast, startups with a youth presence number 5,949, accounting for 40.1 percent of the total.
How much will investment in Italian startups amount to in 2022?
Perhaps the most important (and encouraging) figure for the Italian startup ecosystem is that on investments raised, which hit new records in 2022: in the first half of 2022 alone, total investments in startups reached 1.1 billion euros (source: The Week in Italian Startups), an increase of +59% over the same period last year (650 million euros).
To compare and understand the scale of the growth in investments raised, a total of 1.392 billion euros was invested in Italian startups in all of2021.
In addition, there were 17 investment deals over 10 million euros (up from 10 total in 2021), and the number of rounds led by foreign investors increased from 14 in 2021 to 20 this year, an increase of 30 percent.
Where will investment in Italian startups come from in 2022?
Most investments come from venture capital (€957 million, source Venture Capital Monitor), up +44.8 percent from €429 million in the first half of 2021,equity crowdfunding (€141.89 million, data compiled by the 7th Italian Crowdinvesting Report) up from €127.6 million in 2021, and public funds (€193 million, source MISE, up +44 percent from the previous quarter).
What were the top investments in Italian startups in 2022?
So far, the main 2022 rounds have been:
- Scalapay: Fintech of installment payments (BNPL - Buy Now Pay Later) in the e-commerce world (€505 million);
- Casavo: platform for instant buying real estate (€400 million);
- Bending Spoons: mobile application development (€346 million);
- Satispay: digital payments app for individuals and businesses (€320 million), which surpassed the 1 billion valuation becoming the first Italian unicorn;
- Everli: Italian marketplace for online shopping (€100 million + €22 million);
- brumbrum: Italian site for buying used cars (with an EXIT of €80 million)
What are the main challenges for Italian startups?
All indicators point to strong growth in startups , which bodes well for the coming years.
However, there are still many challenges that startups in Italy face on a daily basis, including access to the know-how to grow and the network of professionals, collaborators, and venture capitalists who can support the development of startups from the first investment rounds to market consolidation.
An encouraging sign, from this point of view, are the numerous initiatives aimed at nurturing the growth of an increasingly structured innovation ecosystem, made up not only of accelerators, venture capitalists and industry players, but also of realities such as the French scaleup Qonto, which has decided to lend its support to the growth of the Italian ecosystem with PowerUp!, a call dedicated to pre-Seed and post-Seed startups.
The initiative, which during the summer was accompanied by a traveling roadshow through some of Italy's major cities, concluded on October 20 in Milan with a Pitch Night in which the finalist startups presented their projects before a panel of investors, founders and industry experts.
It will be Mariano Spalletti, Country Manager of Qonto Italy, who will take the floor on October 27 at the panel "Innovating to grow: the solutions and stakeholders that support the development of the Italian innovation ecosystem" to be held at 4:55 p.m. in the Main Hall of Digital Innovation Days: during the talk, they will talk about innovation and digitization at 360 degrees to aim for rapid and scalable growth thanks to the simplification of business management operations, decentralized financing and meeting and working places where contamination helps development and growth. In addition, strategies and best practices for doing innovation will be shared, with a comparison between the startup landscape in Italy and major European markets in terms of players, ecosystem and culture.
To follow the panel dedicated to Italian startup innovation and all scheduled events, purchase your ticket now to attend Digital Innovation Days.