Sri Lanka: New businesses registered (number)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2022, Sri Lanka's new businesses registered (number) fell 3.4% on 2021 (from 18,066 to 17,447).

Across the 10 yearly changes before that (2009 to 2021), the average change was +10.8% and a typical year strayed about 19.2% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 50.4% in 2010 and the biggest yearly fall was 17% in 2013. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2013 to 2022 the straight-line trend is upward, about 1,439 a year. A straight line explains 94% of the movement over 8 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2022, Sri Lanka had the 4th highest value of the 12 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Sri Lanka in the 2022 ranking

• Nigeria — 1st of 12: 136,961
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 2nd of 12: 18,587
• Switzerland — 3rd of 12: 18,034
• Panama — 5th of 12: 13,048
• Belarus — 6th of 12: 7,820
• Iraq — 7th of 12: 3,037

What this measures

New businesses registered are the number of new limited liability corporations (or its equivalent) registered in the calendar year.

Limitations: The definition of entrepreneurship used is limited to the formal sector. Yet, it should be noted that the exclusion of the informal sector is based on the difficulties of quantifying the number of firms that compose it, rather than on its relevance for developing economies. Data collected from economies categorized as offshore financial centers by Eurostat are excluded from the analysis, because registered entities in these countries may not fit the objective of the Entrepreneurship Database aiming at measuring formally registered companies with actual economic activities.

All 13 values

New businesses registered (number) in nearby economies

• Bangladesh — 7,365 (2024)
• Bhutan — 40 (2022)
• India — 173,712 (2024)
• Maldives — 1,928 (2023)
• Nepal — 25,859 (2020)

More private sector & trade data for Sri Lanka

• Merchandise trade (% of GDP) — 32.22% (2025)
• Merchandise imports (current US$) — US$21.48 billion (2025)
• Merchandise exports (current US$) — US$13.58 billion (2025)
• Merchandise imports from high-income economies (% of total merchandise imports) — 44.93% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside region (% of total merchandise imports) — 33.51% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in East Asia & Pacific (% of total merchandise imports) — 29.14% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in South Asia (% of total merchandise imports) — 21.56% (2023)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Sri Lanka's new businesses registered (number)?

17,447 in 2022, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2008?

It is up 303.77% from 4,321 in 2008 (10.48% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 18,066 in 2021 and the lowest 4,062 in 2009.

How does Sri Lanka rank?

4th highest of 12 economies with data for 2022.

Is the latest change in new businesses registered (number) unusual for Sri Lanka?

In 2022, Sri Lanka's new businesses registered (number) fell 3.4% on 2021 (from 18,066 to 17,447). Across the 10 yearly changes before that (2009 to 2021), the average change was +10.8% and a typical year strayed about 19.2% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.7 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator IC.BUS.NREG, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Entrepreneurship Database, World Bank (WB), uri: https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/entrepreneurship Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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