Globally, tech exits dropped slightly last year, falling 4% to 3358 total M&As and IPOs. However, IPOs were actually up, at 98, compared to 2015’s 90.
Exit activity picked up in the second half of the year, with 1726 exits, compared to 1632 in the first half of the year.
Total Exits by Country
The US led in terms of total tech exits in 2016, boasting 1650+ M&A exits and 25 IPOs. Other countries in the top five by number of exits included the UK, India, Canada, and Germany. Sector-wise, mobile accounted for about 20% of exits in the US, India, and Canada. Every country top five country except Canada saw internet exits make up 55% or more of their 2016 exits.
Exit Valuations
The birthrate of unicorns — companies valued at over a billion dollars — slowed in 2016 vs 2015’s very robust formation rate. Fewer exits were attributable to unicorns as well, with just 4% of all exits going to billion-dollar companies. Three of the most notable unicorn exits were e-commerce site Jet.com, razor supplier Dollar Shave Club, and travel tech company Skyscanner. Over half of all exiting companies were worth less than $50M; 80% were worth less than $200M.
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