Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center Research Identifies Top 20 MSAs As America's Entrepreneurial Growth Engines

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Nov 14, 2025, 13:28 ET

Supported by JPMorganChase and Nasdaq, the new report explores the factors driving the top 20 metro regions for angel investing and SBA 504 scale-up lending

PALO ALTO, Calif., Nov. 14, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The non-profit Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center today released the Top 20 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) as America's Entrepreneurial Growth Engines study, conducted as part of its ongoing research supported by JPMorganChase and Nasdaq.

Cover of the “Advancing Regional Innovation Economies (ARIE) 2025” report from the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center, with research in partnership with Heartland Forward and Penn State University, highlighting regional innovation economies, small-business growth, access to capital, and data-driven insights for entrepreneurs, policymakers and ecosystem leaders across the United States.

The report identifies the 20 metropolitan regions that lead the nation's accredited angel investing infrastructure and the majority of SBA 504 scale-up lending. The findings evidence that the same metros driving early-stage innovation are also where established main street enterprises are expanding. The conditions that are consistent across these ecosystems are education hubs, migration, and legislative focus.

"These 20 metros are proving that access to angel equity and SBA-backed debt aren't competing forces – they're parallel engines driving both innovation and scale-up expansion," said Nicola Corzine, CEO & Executive Director of the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center. "Geography is one of America's greatest equalizers in entrepreneurship."

"The Advancing Regional Innovation Economies report shows how people and place shape opportunity, highlighting the entrepreneurs, educators, investors, and civic leaders driving growth and community health. JPMorganChase is proud to support this work because small businesses are the backbone of the economy and understanding what powers successful innovation helps more businesses and communities thrive," said Shaolee Sen, Executive Director, Small Business Global Philanthropy, Corporate Responsibility, JPMorganChase.

"This research brings into greater focus the entrepreneurial prosperity that comes from combining multiple capital on-ramps, education, policy and growing communities," said Jailan Griffiths, Global Head of Purpose, Nasdaq.

Migration & Education as Growth Multipliers
Sunbelt metros such as Austin, Orlando, and Charlotte exhibit the highest domestic migration flows, while coastal hubs including San Diego, Seattle, and San Francisco continue to attract international talent. Smaller metros like Pittsburgh, Columbus, and Albany lead in graduates-per-capita, outpacing many larger hubs. Across the Top 20, each region averages more than 15 universities – double the national average – creating deep social capital networks that sustain entrepreneurship at scale.

Policy Environment
Every Top 20 metro scored between 3 and 5 on the Entrepreneurial Policy Activity Index, while most non-Top 20 regions scored between 1 and 2, which shows the correlation between legislative focus and entrepreneurial outcomes.

America's Top 20 Entrepreneurial Growth MSAs

MSA	Notable Anchors
Albany–Schenectady–Troy, NY	SUNY Albany, RPI
Austin–Round Rock, TX	UT Austin, Tesla, Oracle HQs
San Diego–Carlsbad, CA	UCSD, SDSU
San Francisco–Oakland–Hayward, CA	UC Berkeley, UCSF
Pittsburgh, PA	CMU, University of Pittsburgh
Atlanta–Sandy Springs–Roswell, GA	Georgia Tech, Emory, HBCUs
Charlotte–Concord–Gastonia, NC–SC	UNC Charlotte, Finance/Tech expansions
Columbus, OH	Ohio State, Semiconductor corridor
Seattle–Tacoma–Bellevue, WA	University of Washington, Veeam HQ
Baltimore–Columbia–Towson, MD	Johns Hopkins, UMBC
Virginia Beach–Norfolk–Newport News, VA–NC	Old Dominion, Norfolk State
Riverside–San Bernardino–Ontario, CA	UC Riverside, Logistics hub
Los Angeles–Long Beach–Anaheim, CA	UCLA, USC, Caltech
New Orleans–Metairie, LA	Tulane, UNO
Richmond, VA	VCU, Policy anchors
Minneapolis–St. Paul–Bloomington, MN–WI	UMN Twin Cities, MedTech HQs
Washington–Arlington–Alexandria, DC–VA–MD–WV	Georgetown, GWU, UMD
Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford, FL	UCF, Hospitality/Tourism HQs
Portland–Vancouver–Hillsboro, OR–WA	OHSU, Semiconductor & footwear execs
Kansas City, MO–KS	UMKC, Logistics & sports infrastructure

The full report, Top 20 MSAs as America's Entrepreneurial Growth Engines, is available at https://www.nasdaqcenter.org/arie.

About Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center

The Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center is a non-profit committed to growing access and resources for entrepreneurs. The Center meets the real-time needs of founders through educational programming and advances entrepreneurial opportunity by sharing insights with policy leaders, capital allocators and academic partners.

Media Contact:
Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center
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SOURCE Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center