How unicorns are becoming decacorns faster than ever before

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Hi readers,

Fun fact: Today, startups take an average of seven years to attain the status of a unicorn – the title given to a company valued at over US$1 billion. Interestingly, that’s also how long I’ve been in the marketing space. But sadly, my value (and my bank balance) is much lower – probably just about 0.01% of what a unicorn is worth.

And here’s the kicker: Some of these startups – 0.000125% to be exact – only take another 2.5 years to grow by 10x and transform into a decacorn.

To help more founders get started on their journey to reach unicorn (and decacorn) status one day, we’re compiling a list of Asian startups that are currently raising. So if you’re on the lookout for investors, simply fill in this form to get your company featured on the list.

Today we look at,

• The current state of decacorns
• A promising opportunity for agritech in Indonesia
• Other newsy highlights such as AirAsia’s new ride-hailing services in Malaysia, and an Indonesian furniture marketplace planning to go public in 2023

PREMIUM SUMMARY

Are decacorns the new unicorns?

Decacorns are having a moment this year: More than 11 startups reached decacorn status in the first half of 2021 alone. That’s a third of all the decacorns that exist in the world today. And the decacorn boom doesn’t seem to be slowing down any time soon.

• Decacorns go nyoom: We found that companies go from unicorn to decacorn more than 3x faster than how long they take from startup to unicorn. China’s Shein and Yuanfudao were even quicker, taking just 1.4 years to get to a US$10 billion dollar valuation.
• Flash, but why?: Two reasons: Firstly, investors may have poured in too much funding and inflated startups’ valuations. Secondly, the uptick in online advertising and smartphone penetration could have accelerated the growth of decacorns.
• The money is in the… Unsurprisingly, most decacorns emerge from the fintech industry. But decacorns in logistics and transportation have the lead in terms of speed – They take just 1.7 years, on average, to be worth US$10 billion. On the other hand, ecommerce players take nearly 5.7 years.

Read more: Visual: Startup unicorns are becoming decacorns faster than ever before

PREMIUM SUMMARY

Agritech to hold the field

Agritech could be huge for Indonesia. Not only is agriculture a major contributor to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), but the sector also remains largely untapped as only 13.44% of Indonesian farmers currently utilize the internet for their farming needs. This presents a huge opportunity for agritech startups.

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