Cloud Stocks and PaaS: Which SaaS Players Will Win in PaaS

At the end of 2020, I wrote Big Idea 2021: SaaS Companies Will Create 10 Million Jobs with the central thesis that SaaS players would evolve into PaaS to create deeper moats around their core market positions and gain access to the related force multiplier.

To recap on the assumptions:

• IF 1000 SaaS companies open up their platforms as a service, PaaS, as Salesforce.com does, by 2025
• IF each platform lets startups sell through its marketplace, as Salesforce.com does, by 2025
• IF each platform empowers 1000 startups to build on its stack by 2025

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Cloud Stocks: Analysis of Zoom’s Acquisition of Solvvy

According to a recent report, the global video conferencing market is estimated to grow at 11% CAGR from $6.9 billion in 2022 to $14.6 billion by 2029. Online video conferencing player Zoom Video Communications (Nasdaq: ZM) meanwhile continues to try to diversify its offerings beyond video conferencing to enter the contact center market. After a failed attempt at an acquisition last year, it recently acquired a contact center player to make its presence felt in the industry.

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Cloud Stocks: Adobe Strengthens its Creative Cloud Portfolio and Gets Ready for the Metaverse

Adobe (NASDAQ: ADBE) recently reported its quarterly results that continued to outpace market expectations. The company is driving growth by focusing on creative products and catering to the emerging demands of content needed for videos and the metaverse.  

Cloud Stocks: Okta Bounces Back Stronger Despite Security Event

Earlier this year, Okta (NASDAQ: OKTA) had reported an embarrassing security breach incident. If the market was worried about Okta struggling on account of the lapse, its recent quarterly results put all those doubts to rest. The stock market has been bumpy this year, and Okta’s stock had fallen by more than 70% since the start of the year. However, the quarterly results coupled with a strong outlook have sent its stock soaring again.

Cloud Stocks: RingCentral Maintains UCaaS Leadership Through Partnerships and Innovation

Earlier last month, Unified Communication-as-a-Service (UCaaS) leader RingCentral (NYSE:RNG) announced its first quarter results that continued to surpass market expectations. RingCetnral has been building its market presence through continued partnerships with key go-to-market players. The move has helped it secure its leadership position in the North American market.

E-Commerce Unicorns 2022: Getir Struggles as Valuations and Growth Rates Slow Down

According to a recently released McKinsey study, in the first nine months of 2021, nearly $5.8 billion was invested globally in the development of micro-hubs or dark convenience stores for instant grocers.

E-Commerce Unicorns 2022: Olist and Merama Target $580B LatAm E-Commerce Market

According to a recent market report, Latin America’s e-commerce market is expected to grow at 29% CAGR to $580 billion by 2024. The pandemic conditions have accelerated this growth, and led to the rise of several unicorns in the region.

E-Commerce Unicorns 2022: RIDI Looks to International Markets for Webcomics

According to a recent report, the global Webtoons market is estimated to grow from $3.3 billion in 2021 to $22.22 billion by 2028 at a CAGR of 31%. South Korean players are big players in the industry with one of them recently joining the Unicorn club.

E-Commerce Unicorns 2022: Whatnot Builds a Flywheel for Influencer-Driven E-Commerce

According to a recently published study, the Global Influencer Marketing Platform market is projected to grow at 30.8% CAGR to reach $90.2 billion by 2030 from $8.4 billion in 2021. While social media giants like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Pinterest are the biggest platforms available for this kind of e-commerce, there are other players, like Whatnot, who are making their presence felt in the market.

E-Commerce Unicorns 2022: Lofty Valuations for Profitable D2C E-Commerce Players Heyday and Vuori

According to the US Department of Commerce, e-commerce sales in the US grew 14.7% to $870 billion in 2021. The global e-commerce sales are expected to grow at 14.7% from 2020-2027. The industry is attracting a slew of entrepreneurs looking to cash in on this growth, resulting in the creation of several unicorn players.

E-Commerce Unicorns 2022: Motorway and Flink Meet Pandemic Driven Demands through E-Commerce

According to a report published earlier this year, the e-commerce market in Europe is expected to grow 7.3% annually to $363 billion by 2027 from $481 billion in 2022. The recent pandemic has accelerated the demand for e-commerce across various sectors. Supply chain issues have accelerated the demand, and values for used cars. One such player, benefitting from this growth, is UK-based Motorway, which entered the Unicorn club recently.