Entrepreneurial Spark named world’s most active accelerator

Entrepreneurial Spark has been identified as the “world’s most active accelerator” in The Global Accelerator Report 2015 from Gust and Fundacity.

The report looked at the performance of UK accelerators and found that they invested $9.9 million in start-ups in 2015.

Outperforming

The UK’s accelerators were found to have contributed to nearly a quarter of the $41 million invested in start-ups in 2015, outperforming European countries such as Denmark and Spain, which contributed $4.8 million and $4.6 million respectively.

The report also showed that the UK ranked second only to the US in terms of start-up creation, helping to develop 1,124 businesses in 2015 compared to 2,522 start-ups in the US.

Entrepreneurial Spark was found to be the most active accelerator last year, creating 660 start-ups. The company currently runs nine programmes across the UK in locations such as Manchester, Bristol and Cardiff.

The research also identified the most popular categories for start-ups, with the Internet of Things leading the way at 74 per cent, followed by data analytics at 65 per cent, software as a service at 65 per cent and fintech at 64 per cent.

Diverse

Commenting on the report’s findings, Startupbootcamp UK Chief Operating Officer Edwina Johnson said: “Europe now has some of the best accelerators in the world – with the advantage of years of experience, access to a diverse talent pool and some of the most advanced markets digitally to work within – just take Estonia and their e-Residency!”