The Ideal Place for a Tech Startup?
Silicon Valley isn’t what it used to be. Some say that there are too many giants these days. It can’t disrupt because it has become the status quo. So, where will the lean, mean game-changers of the future start their fledgeling ventures these days? Which part of the world will be the birthplace of the next generation of world-changing tech?
There are plenty of contenders for the top spot, but for many tech entrepreneurs with innovative ideas, Scandinavia, and particularly Finland, is the hotbed of choice for the launch of their fledgeling endeavours.
Scandinavia loves innovation and new technologies. Its governments, including that of Finland, have shown their willingness to support and fund new tech businesses — and they haven’t been afraid of a disruptive approach if it offers the promise of a better way to get things done.
Finland: From Angry Birds to Security Tokens, it’s Already a Tech Hotspot
Those Angry Birds certainly took the world by storm, but the game creator, Rovio, is by no means the only Finnish tech company to make waves. Yoogaia has become the new way to do yoga, and if you haven’t heard of Nokia (which is still going strong, just in a different sector) you’ve been living under a stone for a few decades.
Most recently, Finland has been offering a hospitable yet meticulous legislative environment for something altogether new on the tech scene: security tokens.
Thanks to digital currencies, we already know that it’s possible to own digital assets. Security tokens take this a step further with digital-currency-backed values assigned to real-world assets that do have a conventional cash value.
Needless to say, the innovation can present something of a surprise for traditional securities markets. But Finland is poised to take the lead, and showing readiness to enter the security tokens market with the upcoming Stoxchange, a pioneering firm in the security tokens marketplace.
From games to the ways we communicate and now the way we invest, Finland has proved its mettle as a tech hotspot.
And Then There’s Helsinki
Finland’s market is traditionally a small one, and in a country eager to make global waves, anything with an international flavour for the global market will get special attention. And Finland knows it can do it, so it’s willing to put its investment-money where its mouth is.
Apart from offering a stable environment that’s free from corruption, it’s gaining a reputation as a hub where Eastern Europe, Western Europe, and the USA connect to do business.
Helsinki is the city where start-ups congregate. And apart from offering a stable environment that’s free from corruption, it’s gaining a reputation as a hub where Eastern Europe, Western Europe, and the USA connect to do business.
Its renowned tech conference, dubbed the Slush Conference, draws 17,500 delegates and one million viewers who follow the Helsinki event via live streaming. In Finland’s tech history, Nokia was certainly a milestone, but it’s the new kids on the block that are making waves now.
The Silicon Valley of Europe
There is a multitude of reasons why Finland has to be one of the best places in the world for a tech startup to base itself. The Huffington Post makes an effort at listing them all beginning with the country’s high standard of education, its tech infrastructure, and its funding opportunities and running through its advantages up to and including a favourable taxation environment, but even so, it’s bound to have omitted at least one or two of the many.
It’s easiest to sum up: Nokia may have been the big wave that launched Finland onto the startup scene, but it’s riding that wave like a pro and going all out to create an attractive environment for innovation and investment in tech startups.
It will be no understatement to say that Finland could be the incubator for tech that will change the world and the way we do things. That’s why pioneering security token platform Stoxchange has based itself in Finland. The regulatory environment is conservative enough to promote trust while the culture of innovation and tech is cutting-edge.
“We believe that security tokens will change the way people invest,” says Stoxchange CEO Jaakko Kotivuori. “From a tech startup perspective, if you’re serious about changing the world, Finland’s the place to be.”
