Lithuanian startups among the fastest-growing in the region: experts explain how the overall level of entrepreneurship is increasing the country’s potential

Over the past few years, Lithuania’s startup ecosystem has become one of the fastest-growing in the region. However, its next stage of growth will require more than successful examples or increasing investor attention. According to experts, a broader foundation of entrepreneurship is becoming increasingly important — more people who are willing to start businesses, test ideas in the market, and turn the most promising ones into internationally scalable companies.

“Today, there are around 1,300 startups in Lithuania included in the Startup Lithuania ecosystem database. According to Startup Lithuania and Dealroom, the value of Lithuania’s startup ecosystem reached EUR 16.4 billion in 2025, growing 5.9 times over five years — significantly faster than the Central and Eastern European average,” says Donatas Šumyla, Head of Startup Partnerships at Swedbank.

The importance of startups to Lithuania’s economy is growing every year. According to Unicorns Lithuania, in 2024 Lithuanian startups paid EUR 472.6 million in taxes to the state budget — almost 12 times more than in 2017. The latest data shows that the sector employs more than 19,000 specialists, while the average salary is approaching EUR 4,600 per month.

Lithuania is rapidly catching up with regional leaders

In the Baltic context, Lithuania had long been catching up with Estonia, which had previously established itself as the region’s startup leader. However, in recent years the gap has been narrowing: the value of Lithuania’s startup ecosystem has grown faster than the Central and Eastern European average, and in terms of venture capital investment per capita, the country is already among the stronger markets in the region.

“Nevertheless, despite the fact that Lithuania’s startup ecosystem has become a significant part of the economy in a relatively short period of time — with a growing community and increasing attention from international investors — we still have room to improve in terms of capital depth, especially at later growth stages. Therefore, the next important step is to create the conditions for promising teams to grow in Lithuania, attract talent, and compete in international markets,” says D. Šumyla.

Good ideas alone are no longer enough to maintain momentum

According to D. Šumyla, the startup market itself is also changing: investors are increasingly less likely to finance just an idea or a promise of rapid growth. Today, more attention is being paid to efficiency, revenue, unit economics, team quality, and the ability to grow sustainably.

He says that startups most often get stuck not because of one single reason, but due to several factors: an unproven market need, a team that is too weak, a lack of early-stage funding, and thinking about international markets too late.

“A startup does not win when it has good technology, but when it clearly understands the problem, finds its first customers, and proves that the market is willing to pay for the solution. For Lithuanian startups, an additional challenge is that the local market is small, which means they have to think about growth beyond it from the very first steps,” says D. Šumyla.

Almost every second person without a business would like to start one

Although the number of startups in Lithuania is growing, a broader foundation of entrepreneurship is also important for the long-term growth of the ecosystem. The more people are willing to start a business, the greater the likelihood that this flow will also produce startups with high growth potential.

Rasa Verkauskaitė-Kazanskienė, Head of Small Business Customers and Sales at Swedbank, says that entrepreneurial potential often remains untapped not because of a lack of ideas, but because of insufficient confidence to test them in practice.

“As shown by a public survey initiated by Swedbank, part of the entrepreneurial potential has not yet turned into concrete action: 44% of those who do not have their own business would like to start one, but only 4% of them have concrete plans and are actively implementing them. The rest are most often still refining their idea or looking for the time and financial opportunities to bring it to life. So Lithuanians do not lack the desire to create businesses. The biggest challenge is moving from thoughts to a plan and action,” says R. Verkauskaitė-Kazanskienė.

People are most often motivated to start a business by the desire to work for themselves and earn more — these reasons were mentioned by 72% and 53% of respondents, respectively. However, some also see broader opportunities: 9% identify untapped market niches, while another 9% would like to create innovative products or services.

“Not every new business has to become a startup, but the startup ecosystem needs a broad foundation of entrepreneurship. The more people are willing to look for new solutions, the more ambitious teams emerge — and some of them go on to reach startup growth momentum,” concludes R. Verkauskaitė-Kazanskienė.

Prepared by Swedbank.