The term ‘hypergrowth’ first appeared in the April 2008 issue of the Harvard Business Review, which defined it as ‘the steep part of the S-curve that most young markets and industries experience at some point, where the winners get sorted from the losers.’ The steep part of the S-curve is known as the hypergrowth curve.

To achieve unicorn status, that is to be a startup company with a valuation of over $1 billion, is one of the most desired phases of any fintech company’s existence.

“We are in a hyper-growth industry and within that, the company itself is experiencing hyper-growth,” Dhivya Suryadevara, Stripe’s Chief Financial Officer.

Companies that have successfully navigated the hypergrowth stage are described by the World Economic Forum as being those businesses that have “astonished the global public with their ability to expand and scale at a pace that was previously unknown.”

Despite the benefits, achieving unicorn status is no guarantee of sustained success or even survival. It does, however, signal to investors that a market is mature and more players start to pay attention.

The future is unclear so staying nimble means having a clear view and plan for what multiple futures could look like. Having open and honest conversations internally about realistic spend and growth projections, that is only possible with a real-time overview of the business and the ability to quickly understand the impact of any market changes.

KPMG believe that merger and acquisition activity may see a resurgence, driven by organisations accelerating their digital capabilities and fintechs driving scale as they look to grow globally or extend into adjacent industries. Being true, an agile approach is required to leverage the growth opportunities, keeping cash flow aligned while the business drives scale.

This is a period of notable change, with potential economic downturn, volatile investment markets, new regulations, political fluctuations affecting currency rates, access to skills and trade deals, amongst other things.

With these significant variables, growing realistically and incrementally gives the organisation the solid foundation necessary to avoid tripping over as you grow.

For further information, including details on how to manage hypergrowth businesses efficiently, download our full whitepaper.

Our next blog will explore the latest trends including convenience and the connected customer, keep an eye on our social channels where we’ll be publishing details.