Riga Startups

Formation Index

Company Formations, Q1 2016

2,835 limited companies were registered in Latvia in Q1 2016, -18.4% against the same quarter a year earlier and -4.5% against the quarter before. Of those, 1,616 were registered in Rīga. Joining them is a two day filing.

Source: Uzņēmumu reģistrs open data, dump of 27 September 2026, covering registrations through 25 September 2026. Population REGISTER_BASELINE (SIA and AS). Definitions v4. Methodology.

Cover for Company Formations in Latvia, Q1 2016
Formations
2,835
Q1 2016
Quarter
-4.5%
-135
Year
-18.4%
-639
Rolling 4Q
11,971
last four quarters

How Many Companies Are Registered in Latvia Each Quarter?

2,835 limited companies were registered in Latvia in Q1 2016, -18.4% against the same quarter a year earlier and -4.5% against the quarter before. The four quarter total to Q1 2016 was 11,971, and that is the figure to read, because Latvian formations are seasonal.

Formations by Quarter

08751,7502,6253,5002016 Q115164Q avg
Bars are the quarter. The line is the four quarter average, on the same axis, which is the series to read: Latvian formations are seasonal and Q1 is not comparable with Q3. The 2020 collapse and rebound is COVID.
Show the numbers
QuarterFormationsQoQYoYRolling 4Q
Q1 20153,474n/an/an/a
Q2 20153,117-10.3%n/an/a
Q3 20153,049-2.2%n/an/a
Q4 20152,970-2.6%n/a12,610
Q1 20162,835-4.5%-18.4%11,971

Where in Latvia Are New Companies Registered?

Rīga had the most, 1,616 of the 2,835 limited companies registered in Q1 2016, followed by Jūrmala with 76. Within Riga, Centrs led with 294, though a registered address is often an accountant’s office rather than a workplace.

Where They Registered

The ten busiest of Latvia's 80 municipalities in Q1 2016.
Show the numbers
MunicipalityFormations
Rīga1,616
Jūrmala76
Mārupes nov.75
Liepāja63
Daugavpils62
Jelgava60
Ogres nov.59
Ķekavas nov.49
Ropažu nov.38
Tukuma nov.38
Cēsu nov.36
Olaines nov.36
Valmieras nov.34
Bauskas nov.32
Jelgavas nov.28
Salaspils nov.28
Siguldas nov.28
Ādažu nov.26
Dobeles nov.24
Kuldīgas nov.23
Madonas nov.22
Rēzekne22
Talsu nov.21
Dienvidkurzemes nov.20
Jēkabpils nov.20
Limbažu nov.19
Ventspils19
Aizkraukles nov.18
Gulbenes nov.18
Krāslavas nov.18
Saldus nov.18
Alūksnes nov.15
Balvu nov.12
Saulkrastu nov.12
Ventspils nov.12
Rēzeknes nov.10
Valmiera10
Jēkabpils8
Smiltenes nov.8
Babītes nov.7
Augšdaugavas nov.6
Ludzas nov.5
Pļaviņu nov.5
Valkas nov.5
Vecumnieku nov.5
Garkalnes nov.4
Inčukalna nov.4
Līvānu nov.4
Aizputes nov.3
Alojas nov.3
Auces nov.3
Dagdas nov.3
Daugavpils nov.3
Kandavas nov.3
Beverīnas nov.2
Carnikavas nov.2
Grobiņas nov.2
Ikšķiles nov.2
Kocēnu nov.2
Kokneses nov.2
Lielvārdes nov.2
Pārgaujas nov.2
Preiļu nov.2
Rūjienas nov.2
Salacgrīvas nov.2
Stopiņu nov.2
Viļakas nov.2
Amatas nov.1
Burtnieku nov.1
Dundagas nov.1
Durbes nov.1
Engures nov.1
Kārsavas nov.1
Ķeguma nov.1
Krimuldas nov.1
Lubānas nov.1
Ozolnieku nov.1
Riebiņu nov.1
Salas nov.1
Vaiņodes nov.1

Where in Riga

All 1,609 Riga formations placed in a neighbourhood from the registered address. A registered address is often an accountant's office rather than a workplace, so read this as where companies are filed, not where people sit.
Show the numbers
NeighbourhoodFormations
Centrs294
Imanta99
Teika90
Avoti86
Purvciems83
Latgale69
Ķengarags68
Sarkandaugava66
Ziepniekkalns57
Āgenskalns56
Pļavnieki47
Grīziņkalns43
Brasa38
Jugla37
Iļģuciems33
Torņakalns32
Mežciems30
Šķirotava30
Dārzciems27
Vecpilsēta27
Zolitūde25
Vecmīlgrāvis24
Čiekurkalns23
Pleskodāle22
Skanste21
Pētersala-Andrejsala20
Bolderāja19
Dzirciems19
Mežaparks16
Šampēteris11
Bieriņi10
Dreiliņi10
Zasulauks10
Atgāzene9
Mīlgrāvis9
Brekši6
Berģi5
Jaunciems5
Rumbula5
Dārziņi4
Daugavgrīva4
Ķīpsala4
Mangaļsala3
Trīsciems3
Bišumuiža2
Salas2
Katlakalns1
Kleisti1
Mūkupurvs1
Spilve1
Vecāķi1
Vecdaugava1

Neighbourhood names link through to the companies we list there. See them on the map.

Do These Formation Numbers Change After Publication?

Yes, slightly, and the page tells you which reading you are looking at. Every edition carries the dump it was built from and the date the data runs to. A later dump of the same register can return a different count for a quarter already published, because the register keeps changing behind the dump.

Three things move a number after it is out. Registrations and corrections are entered after the fact, so a company formed near the end of a quarter can land in a later dump than the one that first reported that quarter. Terminated companies leave the capital file entirely, which lowers a quarter’s capital coverage as it ages. And a definition can change, in which case the changelog below says so.

Two rules keep that honest rather than confusing. A quarter is not reported at all until at least ten days have passed since it ended, which is what stops the first reading being the worst one. And each quarter gets its own permanent address once it qualifies, so the figure you cite stays where you found it.

Cite the dated edition rather than this page if the number matters. The hub always shows the latest complete quarter, which means the same URL says something different next quarter, and that is the difference a citation needs to survive.

What Does the Latvia Company Formation Index Not Measure?

Startups, for one: it counts every limited company, because Latvia publishes no industry classification per company as open data. A formation is also a registration rather than a business, since some of these companies will never trade and some hold a single asset, so the index counts only what the register records.

This counts every limited company, not startups. Latvia publishes no industry classification per company as open data, and every signal that would mark a company as a tech company is one that disappears when the company does. Rather than dress a guess as a definition, the index counts what the register actually records and says so in its title. The reasoning is set out on the methodology page.

A formation is a registration, not a business. Some of these companies will never trade, and some are holding vehicles for a single asset. The survival series will eventually say how many.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Many Companies Were Registered in Latvia in Q1 2016?

2,835 limited companies, SIA and AS, were registered in Latvia in Q1 2016, -18.4% against the same quarter a year earlier and -4.5% against the quarter before.

Why Are Latvian Company Formations Read Over Four Quarters?

Because formations are seasonal, so a first quarter is not comparable with a third. The four quarter total to Q1 2016, 11,971, smooths that out and is the series to read.

Does the Latvia Company Formation Index Count Startups?

No. It counts every limited company registered, because Latvia publishes no industry classification per company as open data, and every signal that would mark a company as a tech company disappears when the company does.

Where Does the Latvia Company Formation Index Data Come From?

From the Uzņēmumu reģistrs open data, dump of 27 September 2026, covering registrations through 25 September 2026. Riga neighbourhoods are placed from each company’s registered address.

When Is the Latvia Company Formation Index Published?

In the second week after each quarter ends. Each edition has its own page and CSV, and the full quarterly series can be downloaded as a single file.

Definitions Changelog

Cite This

Sageo SIA (2026). Company Formations in Latvia, Q1 2016. Riga Startups. Computed from Uzņēmumu reģistrs open data, extract of 2026-09-27. https://rigastartups.com/reports/formation-index-2016-q1

Permalink: https://rigastartups.com/reports/formation-index-2016-q1 · CSV for this edition

The numbers are free to reuse. The register data underneath is CC0 and this analysis of it is offered on the same terms. An attribution and a link back is the whole ask.

Other Editions

Published in the second week after each quarter ends.

Download the full series as CSV