Riga Startups

Formation Index

Company Formations, Q4 2020

1,959 limited companies were registered in Latvia in Q4 2020, -11.2% against the same quarter a year earlier and -13.4% against the quarter before. Of those, 962 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, Q4 2020
Formations
1,959
Q4 2020
Quarter
-13.4%
-303
Year
-11.2%
-247
Rolling 4Q
8,261
last four quarters

How Many Companies Are Registered in Latvia Each Quarter?

1,959 limited companies were registered in Latvia in Q4 2020, -11.2% against the same quarter a year earlier and -13.4% against the quarter before. The four quarter total to Q4 2020 was 8,261, and that is the figure to read, because Latvian formations are seasonal.

Formations by Quarter

08751,7502,6253,5002020 Q41516171819204Q 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 20182,696+11.5%+10.8%9,663
Q2 20182,485-7.8%+8.1%9,850
Q3 20182,405-3.2%+6.8%10,004
Q4 20182,337-2.8%-3.3%9,923
Q1 20192,756+17.9%+2.2%9,983
Q2 20192,372-13.9%-4.5%9,870
Q3 20192,295-3.2%-4.6%9,760
Q4 20192,206-3.9%-5.6%9,629
Q1 20202,548+15.5%-7.5%9,421
Q2 20201,492-41.4%-37.1%8,541
Q3 20202,262+51.6%-1.4%8,508
Q4 20201,959-13.4%-11.2%8,261

Where in Latvia Are New Companies Registered?

Rīga had the most, 962 of the 1,959 limited companies registered in Q4 2020, followed by Mārupes nov. with 64. Within Riga, Centrs led with 138, though a registered address is often an accountant’s office rather than a workplace.

Where They Registered

The ten busiest of Latvia's 42 municipalities in Q4 2020.
Show the numbers
MunicipalityFormations
Rīga962
Mārupes nov.64
Ogres nov.59
Jūrmala56
Jelgava53
Liepāja53
Cēsu nov.47
Ķekavas nov.40
Daugavpils37
Valmieras nov.37
Ropažu nov.33
Siguldas nov.33
Dienvidkurzemes nov.30
Tukuma nov.29
Ādažu nov.28
Saldus nov.25
Talsu nov.25
Bauskas nov.24
Kuldīgas nov.23
Ventspils22
Aizkraukles nov.21
Jēkabpils nov.20
Salaspils nov.20
Gulbenes nov.19
Madonas nov.19
Olaines nov.19
Balvu nov.18
Smiltenes nov.18
Krāslavas nov.14
Limbažu nov.14
Jelgavas nov.13
Rēzeknes nov.13
Alūksnes nov.12
Dobeles nov.10
Ludzas nov.10
Rēzekne8
Saulkrastu nov.8
Preiļu nov.7
Augšdaugavas nov.5
Ventspils nov.5
Līvānu nov.3
Valkas nov.3

Where in Riga

All 961 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
Centrs138
Purvciems62
Teika62
Imanta51
Ķengarags50
Pļavnieki43
Latgale41
Avoti40
Āgenskalns36
Brasa32
Ziepniekkalns31
Sarkandaugava30
Dārzciems28
Grīziņkalns27
Jugla24
Skanste24
Čiekurkalns22
Iļģuciems22
Zolitūde22
Vecpilsēta18
Dzirciems13
Vecmīlgrāvis13
Mežciems12
Pleskodāle11
Bolderāja10
Šķirotava10
Dreiliņi9
Pētersala-Andrejsala9
Torņakalns9
Bieriņi8
Mežaparks8
Atgāzene6
Brekši4
Šampēteris4
Zasulauks4
Daugavgrīva3
Ķīpsala3
Rumbula3
Spilve3
Berģi2
Mangaļsala2
Mīlgrāvis2
Suži2
Trīsciems2
Vecāķi2
Bišumuiža1
Bukulti1
Dārziņi1
Jaunciems1

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 Q4 2020?

1,959 limited companies, SIA and AS, were registered in Latvia in Q4 2020, -11.2% against the same quarter a year earlier and -13.4% 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 Q4 2020, 8,261, 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, Q4 2020. Riga Startups. Computed from Uzņēmumu reģistrs open data, extract of 2026-09-27. https://rigastartups.com/reports/formation-index-2020-q4

Permalink: https://rigastartups.com/reports/formation-index-2020-q4 · 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