From January to August 2023, Brazil saw 2.7 million new businesses open. This boosts the total to 21.8 million active firms nationwide.
Importantly, 93.7% are small or micro-businesses. Starting a business took an average of 1 day and 5 hours in the second quarter.
The Business Map report revealed these numbers. Brazil’s Ministry of Development and the Federal Service for Data Processing partnered for the study.
They released this data last Tuesday.
Interestingly, Maranhão led in business growth, rising 7.7% since the year began. In contrast, Paraíba saw a 5.7% drop.
In pure numbers, São Paulo came first with 408,116 new firms. Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro followed with 147,147 and 115,264, respectively.
However, 1.47 million firms also closed. This leaves a net gain of 1.23 million new businesses.
Specifically, the second quarter saw 1,382,708 startups and 738,190 closures. This resulted in a net increase of 644,518 new firms.
Amanda Souto, a department director, praised the surge in Brazilian entrepreneurial activity. She cited the significant net rise in new firms.
The report also tracked start-up time. By the quarter’s end, this average fell to 1 day and 5 hours. However, this shows a six-hour increase compared to last year.
Finally, Sergipe was the quickest state for starting a business, at 7 hours. São Paulo took the longest but improved by 6 hours to an average of 1 day and 20 hours.
Among the capitals, Aracaju, Goiânia, and Curitiba took only 2 hours. Belém lagged behind, taking 3 days and 6 hours on average.
Background
The data underscores Brazil’s robust entrepreneurial culture. A net increase of 1.23 million new businesses is promising.
Yet, the high number of closures also suggests market volatility. Small and micro-businesses dominate, making up over 90% of the total.
This could point to easier entry but also perhaps a lack of scalability.
It’s also notable that São Paulo remains an economic hub. However, its slower business registration time may deter some entrepreneurs.
Reducing bureaucratic delays nationwide can spur even more business activity, benefiting the entire economy.