Startups operating in Lithuania and the technology companies that grew from them added as much as 2024 million euros to the country's budget in 473 - approximately 71 million euros more than in 2023. The average salary paid in the sector also continues to grow steadily - compared to the situation a year ago, in 2024 it was 400 euros higher and reached 4,2 thousand euros before taxes, according to data from the Unicorns Lithuania association.
"Startups continue to grow, expand their areas of activity, conquer new markets and attract investments even in difficult economic and geopolitical circumstances. However, the greatest potential of the sector is reflected in a more detailed analysis of the statistics. For example, last year, as many as 89 companies paid taxes exceeding 1 million euros, while the year before there were 74 such companies. This means that we have more and more stable and strong technology companies, which currently employ a record number of people - as many as 19 thousand. employees. Startups founded in other countries are also successfully expanding in Lithuania, we see extremely positive growth trends of technology companies and future business unicorns," says Gintarė Verbickaitė, head of Unicorns Lithuania.
TOP 5 startups operating in Lithuania that paid the most taxes (2024):
1. "Vinted" – 38,00 million euros (+ 61 percent compared to 2023)
2. Binance – 27,82 million euros (+ 192% compared to 2023)
3. Wargaming – 26,4 million euros (- 4 percent compared to 2023)
4. Nord Security – 23,83 million euros (+ 12 percent compared to 2023)
5. Baltic Classifieds Group – 19,25 million euros (+ 24 percent compared to 2023)
Oxylabs and KiloHealth also exceed the 10 million euro tax threshold per year, while Gurtam, Flo Health, Surfshark, Hostinger, Omnisend, Ovoko, carVertical, and Bored Panda are also in the top fifteen largest taxpayers.
TOP 5 startups with the highest salaries (2024, before taxes):
1. Tesonet Accelerator – 9,8 thousand euros (+ 25 percent compared to 2023)
2. Payhawk – 9,4 thousand euros (+ 94 percent compared to 2023)
3. Game Insight – 9,1 thousand euros (- 5 percent compared to 2023)
4. FatMap – 8,8 thousand euros (+ 53 percent compared to 2023)
5. Stock Invest.us – 8,5 thousand euros (+ 53 percent compared to 2023)
According to Unicorns Lithuania, there are over 1 startups active in Lithuania today. As many as 40 percent of all companies pay their talents a salary higher than the average in Lithuania.
"It is important to emphasize that value for employees is created not only through financial aspects: salary, bonuses or options, but also through the opportunity to work in innovative companies that operate globally while living in Lithuania. This allows talents to rapidly expand their knowledge and skills, and later perhaps use them to create their own businesses," the head of Unicorns Lithuania points out.
According to G. Verbickaitė, the sector's results provide a solid basis for predicting that startups and technology companies can become a significant engine of the Lithuanian economy. Unicorns Lithuania sets a goal for the information and communications (ICT) sector to generate 20 percent of Lithuania's GDP by 2030.
