Estonian mobility company Bolt has been ranked among Europe’s 20 most valuable startups and scale-ups, securing the ninth position with a valuation of €7.4B. The ranking, compiled by Sifted, places the Tallinn-based company alongside major European tech players in a list dominated by FinTech and Enterprise SaaS companies.
According to the analysis, European billion-dollar tech companies are becoming increasingly common, with over 150 startups reaching unicorn status. While the pace of new unicorns has slowed compared to the boom years of 2021 and 2022, Europe continues to build a strong pool of valuable tech businesses across the continent. Estonia contributes disproportionally to this success—with just over 1.3 M in population, the country has minted 10 unicorns, ranking first in Europe.
Bolt, which now stands out as a major competitor to Uber, offers a comprehensive suite of mobility services including ride-hailing, food delivery, e-bikes, and e-scooters across 45 countries worldwide. In its home city of Tallinn, it even collaborates with other mobility innovators to offer autonomous robot delivery.
The company achieved its current valuation after raising a €628 million Series F round in 2022. Recently, Bolt secured an additional €220 million credit facility, which the company says is part of its strategic preparation for a potential IPO. If the market conditions remain favourable, Bolt could potentially go public within the next few years.
The top positions in the ranking are held by UK-based neobank Revolut (€43B), followed by London-based fintech Rapyd (€14.5B) and Swedish buy now, pay later giant Klarna (€14bn). Nearly half of the ranked companies operate in the FinTech sector, while only one AI company made the list — France’s Mistral AI with a €5.8B valuation. Estonia, while being universally recognised as Europe’s best place for AI, is still looking for its first unicorn in the space — but already counts notable exits, such as AI startup Klaus, acquired by Zendesk last year.
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