GNO, Inc. Sunday Night Highlight – Nasdaq Names New Orleans a Top 20 Entrepreneurial Growth Engine
New research from the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center has identified the New Orleans–Metairie Metro as #14 amongst America’s Top 20 Entrepreneurial Growth MSAs, ranking it among leading innovation hubs such as Austin, San Francisco, Pittsburgh, Seattle, and Charlotte.
The study notes that top-performing regions share several characteristics: deep higher education networks, state and local policy environments that support entrepreneurship, and amenities that attract diverse populations. Specifically, across the Top 20 metros, regions average more than 15 universities – GNO has 13 – creating dense social and professional networks that fuel new company formation. New Orleans’ anchors, including Tulane, UNO, and a growing cluster of health, digital, and creative industries – play a major role in that strength, according to the report.
The full list of MSAs recognized by Nasdaq:
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Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY
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Austin–Round Rock, TX
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San Diego–Carlsbad, CA
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San Francisco–Oakland–Hayward, CA
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Pittsburgh, PA
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Atlanta–Sandy Springs–Roswell, GA
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Charlotte–Concord–Gastonia, NC–SC
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Columbus, OH
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Seattle–Tacoma–Bellevue, WA
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Baltimore–Columbia–Towson, MD
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Virginia Beach–Norfolk–Newport News, VA–NC
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Riverside–San Bernardino–Ontario, CA
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Los Angeles–Long Beach–Anaheim, CA
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New Orleans–Metairie, LA
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Richmond, VA
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Minneapolis–St. Paul–Bloomington, MN–WI
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Washington–Arlington–Alexandria, DC–VA–MD–WV
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Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, FL
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Portland–Vancouver–Hillsboro, OR–WA
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Kansas City, MO–KS
This national recognition comes with new, corroborating data. The 2024 Venture & Angel Capital Report shows that from 2011 through 2024, Louisiana companies completed 401 venture and angel capital deals, raising more than $1.6 billion. Deal activity peaked in 2022 with 54 transactions, and 2024 set a record for total capital raised at $330 million. The average deal size reached $7.3 million, with the median at $534,000.
The full Top 20 MSAs as America’s Entrepreneurial Growth Engines report is available here.
The 2024 Venture & Angel Capital Report can be found here.