Catalonia’s digital ecosystem has proven resilient in 2023, marked by a global drop in investment in startups. According to a report from the Generalitat, Catalonia has added 2,102 emerging companies, which represents an increase of 4% compared to the previous year.
This growth contrasts with the 58% drop in investment, which was barely 688 million euros, compared to 1,653 million euros the previous year. “Catalonia has a good pool of emerging companies and a consolidated ecosystem, where startups are increasingly larger and have more employees,” said Roger Torrent, Minister of Business and Labor of the Generalitat, together with the CEO of Acció, this morning. Albert Castellanos. In fact, one in three startups already have more than 10 workers, while in 2020 they were only 18% of the total.
According to calculations by Acció, the Generalitat’s agency for business competitiveness, the turnover of these digital companies – which are up to 10 years old – is 2,112 million euros. The data is from 2022 and reflects a growth of 14% compared to the previous year. Regarding employment, Acció assures that the ecosystem is made up of 20,600 workers, including employees and self-employed workers. This figure, which is also not updated, represents a growth of 8% if the data from 2021 to 2022 are compared.
The sectors with the greatest prominence are medical technologies (17% of startups), software and business services (15%), ICT and mobile phones (5%) and food (5%). This year, the Generalitat has highlighted the potential of local universities, where more than a thousand startup founders have emerged. Also significant is the weight of 24% of professionals who come from foreign countries and work in startups in Catalonia.
The Generalitat considers the startup sector strategic since it acts as a driver of innovation for traditional companies. Annually, it allocates 4.5 million euros of subsidies and loans to boost early-stage businesses. According to their observations, seven startups, including Paack, Colvin and Typeform, have the potential to become unicorns, exceeding 1 billion in valuation. Historically, it has been companies such as eDreams, LetGo, Glovo, Travelperk and Wallbox.
