Unicorn Exits Slow to a Trickle in 2022 as Market Downturn Extends Exit Timelines

It takes a median of 8 years for unicorns to exit, with most exits occurring within 11 years or less. Popular 8-year exits include Facebook, LinkedIn, and Indeed.
The most common exit strategies are IPOs, acquisitions, and liquidation/bankruptcy. IPOs saw a huge drop from 79 in 2021 to just 13 in 2022.
YouTube had one of the fastest exist times at just 1 year from founding to acquisition by Google in 2006. Groupon exited after 3 years.
Weaker market performance in 2022 has led to 91% of 2021 IPOs now trading below their IPO price. This has slowed exit activity.
As of Q2 2023, exit activity remains very slow with just 8 US unicorns exiting so far. Companies may cut costs and halt listing plans amid uncertain conditions.

visualcapitalist.com

Relevant topic timeline:

8/3/2023

The Unicorn Fire Sales Ahead

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8/16/2023

As unicorns grow rarer, maybe it’s time to look towards revenue, not valuations

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8/29/2023

The IPO drought was worse than you thought

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Posted 8/14/2023, 7:00:00 AM