BizWorld Updates Monthly Draper Innovation Index Global
Nations Compete to Land in Top Ten of Best Places Globally
to Launch a Startup

DII Global Top 20 Remains Fairly Consistent
U.S. Remains at the Top
Russia Continues to Drop
Estonia Reclaims 13th place from South Korea
Ghana, Dominican Republic, and Albania See Largest Declines
Macau, Northern Mariana Islands, Grenada, Bhutan, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Venezuela See Largest Improvement

Oakland, California – BizWorld announces its August 2025 update to the Draper Innovation Index Global (DII Global), which evaluates each nation’s ability to develop, support, and retain entrepreneurs, innovators, startups, and investors. First published in 2021, the DII Global provides the most well-rounded and up-to-date look at entrepreneurial environments across the globe.

““Congress and the Trump administration passed the GENIUS (Guaranteeing Essential National Infrastructure in US-Stablecoins) Act last month, the first major cryptocurrency legislation in United States history,” said BizWorld Founder Tim Draper. “According to Brookings, fewer than ten major economies on the planet have stablecoin legislation, which means that the U.S. is breaking new ground in the crypto space – and that this crypto-friendliness will likely cement the US in first place in the DII Global index for the time being. Here at the Draper Innovation Index, we’ll closely monitor this act’s impact on the economy and financial markets and keep an eye on similar initiatives in other countries.”

Top Takeaways from the DII Global August 2025 Update

• Continuing to drop due to its ‘Do Not Travel’ U.S. State Advisory and weak currency performance, Russia slipped to 214th out of 228 countries and territories tracked in the DII Global.
• Estonia overtook South Korea for 13th place due to strong currency performance and stronger venture capital investment trends.
• Ghana had this month’s largest decline. Despite maintaining a ‘stable’ S&P outlook, it fell due to weak currency and below-average AI/Machine Learning venture capital investment growth.
• The Dominican Republic saw the month’s second largest drop, falling 11 places to 128th due in large part to inflation trends.
• Albania also fell across all three DII Global scenarios, finishing 69th in the Balance scenario, because its S&P outlook declined from ‘positive’ to ‘stable.’
• Macau (99th) and the Northern Mariana Islands (117th) tied for the month’s largest improvement; both countries rose by 6 places due to strong currency performances.
• Bhutan improved by 5 ranks to 105th in the DII Global, mainly thanks to comparatively stronger currency performance.
• Similarly, Grenada’s currency performance drove its ranking higher from 64th to 59th.
• Thanks to the dollar’s performance, the United States Virgin Islands was able to rise in the rankings from 126th to 121st.
• Alongside slowing inflationary pressures, improving performance in its World Uncertainty Index change helped Venezuela climb from 207th to 202nd in the DII Global.

“Cryptocurrency innovation and adoption have greatly outpaced the regulatory environment,” said BizWorld Chief Economic Advisor Dr. Wallace Walrod. ““The United States is taking a major step towards catching up with the GENIUS Act, which creates a regulatory framework for stablecoins and could be the foundation for a new wave of crypto adoption and investment in the United States. The US joins just a handful of major economies with stablecoin legislation – we’ll keep an eye out for other countries potentially joining this club in the future. slowing down.

The DII Global will release monthly updates to continually reflect the latest developments in global innovation and entrepreneurship, available here.

About BizWorld

BizWorld.org is a global non-profit organization based in Oakland, CA, whose mission is to enable youth from all backgrounds to unlock the power of entrepreneurship to create career opportunities, inspire self-reliance, and build confidence that drives economic prosperity globally.     Founded over 25 years ago by Silicon Valley venture capitalist Tim Draper, BizWorld.org programs teach students real-world 21st century skills and leadership that encourage them to become responsible leaders and entrepreneurs of tomorrow. More than 850,000 students in more than 100 countries have participated in BizWorld programs. https://www.bizworld.org/