Top 3 Digital Projects in Ukraine That Matter Globally

The digital sector in pre-war Ukraine comprised more than 4000 local and over 100 global companies, being the source of pride for the nation and state. Microsoft, Ericsson, Google, Samsung, and Boeing had their subsidiaries in Ukraine.

IT outsourcing companies have specialized skills in the cloud and deal with big data and AI. Ukrainians were the first to roll out digital certificates for COVID-19 vaccination that were recognized all over the European Union.

In 2019 the Ministry of Digital Transformation was established, and the president declared the course for turning Ukraine into a digital state.
- The Air Alert app was created in 2 days(!) with the support of the Ministry of Digital Transformation and is now installed by more than 21 million.
- The Diia app is the most important digital project launched in Ukraine at the state level, and we’ll speak about it a bit later.

The banking sector is the one most actively responding to global economic changes and the digitization of financial services. Ukrainian cutting-edge neobank Monobank is an outstanding example of banking mobile app development. This is one of the most successful Eastern European projects FinTech and one of the fastest-growing neobanks globally. We’ll also speak about it further on.

In 2021, the Ukrainian IT sector grew 36% compared to the previous 2020, from $5 billion in exports of IT services in 2020 to $6.8 billion at the beginning of 2021. Developers in Ukraine were ranked fourth globally in the number of certified IT professionals.

Russia’s invasion has posed new Stfalcon was at the forefront of one of such tasks, we are going to share our case in section 3.

But let’s first speak about the development in Ukraine.

Development in Ukraine in 2023 and after

Ukraine has been actively developing digital instruments in various spheres before the Russian invasion. However, even after it, 1 in 5 Fortune 500 Companies are outsourcing their software development needs to Ukraine software developers here rank among the top 10 countries globally in terms of technological skills. They are reputed to have hard and soft skills that make them stand out from professionals from other countries.

So Ukrainian specialists have an incredible reputation in the tech industry proven by enormous triumphs in the tech sector, such as Grammarly, Ajax, GitHub, Wix, and surely Diia, Monobank, and the Air Alert app.

What is more, the price for high-quality coding and software solution development is lower compared to their European and US counterparts. But that’s not all, let’s check some more benefits Ukrainian software developers can offer:

Extensive Technological Expertise

Developers of Ukraine are experienced in many modern technologies and skilled in a wide range of frameworks and programming languages. They stay up-to-date to stay competitive in Java, JavaScript, C#, C++, Python, PHP, Swift, Ruby, Typescript, Kotlin, and much more.

Above 50% of Ukrainian programmers work in the back end, almost 20% do web or front-end, and around 8% are proficient in mobile development. Do not forget those in QA, data processing, systems, and much more.

Another factor that makes Ukrainian specialists stand out is their specialized industry knowledge. Though fintech and banking top the list of client industries in the country, there are also lots of projects related to digital health media, and entertainment.

Well-qualified in Tech

Over a quarter of Ukrainian developers are at the senior level, and over 42% are middle. 17% of developers work 5 to 10 years and around 30% have 3+ years of experience, with just 1% having 1 year of experience or less.

High-quality Code

According to SkillValue developers’ skills assessment in January 2022, Ukraine has ranked the 4th country with the highest success rate of developers. 20557 quiz results and algorithm exercises were analyzed and the USA fell 1 place behind our country.

Thus, Ukraine is a low-cost offshoring destination that boasts high-quality code, top-notch expertise, and a high-performing level.

High Technical Education Level

The prevalent number of Ukrainian specialists have at least one (and sometimes even more) specialized higher education diploma, above 85% continue their learning with courses and many of the engineers have a foreign education or experience of working overseas.

Proficient Communication in English

Hiring developers from abroad, you risk facing communication barriers that will prevent your project from progressing, but this is not the case for Ukrainians. About 80% of developers have a good command of English and do their best to avoid any miscommunications

Dedication, High-Motivation, and Drive

Even before the war, Ukrainian programmers demonstrated passion and profound interest in new technologies. They used to admit they were driven by their jobs. At present Ukrainian specialists are even more motivated to work, earn money, help their army, and support and recover their country.

So, Ukrainian software engineers are sure to be well motivated and excited about working on your project and also rebuilding their national digital infrastructure.

It’s now the key focus of Ukrainians because the response of the Ukrainian Government to the war is structured around 3 key pillars in the area of digitalization: “Digital Infrastructure, Internet recovery, and development”; “Digital Economy” and “Public Services and Registers”. The plans are worked out and structured for the whole flowing decade up to 2032.

Let’s now finally look into the 3 most powerful Ukrainian projects that have laid the basis for Ukrainian digital development.

The Most Outstanding Digital Projects of Ukraine as of 2023

As we have mentioned above, we are going to speak about the Diia platform that automates government services and digitizes the most essential documents, Monobank neo bank, and the Air Alert app developed by Stfalcon.

Diia

In 2019 newly elected Ukrainian President Zelensky, initiated the project “State in a Smartphone”, as a result, the app developers in Ukraine developed and launched the Diia app before the war.

The website and the application are aimed to simplify traditional bureaucracy and digitize 14 essential documents such as passports, driver’s licenses, vehicle registration certificates, taxpayer identification numbers, etc. It provides the citizens with a single portal for public services, you can even register as an entrepreneur there. Over 70 online services are available on the portal: you can pay taxes, debts, or fines, take opinion polls through the app, or even watch state TV.

For millions of Ukrainians, the Diia app became the main form of identification and important document storage, which became extremely important in wartime. Every digital document in Diia has an equal legal force to its paper or plastic counterpart.

In such a way, government development services realized the ambition of Ukraine to become the world’s leading state in terms of providing services for people and businesses digitally. Ukrainians are the first in the world to use digital IDs without any internal (and already many external) restrictions.

Monobank

Monobank, the first mobile-only bank in Ukraine, is the fastest-growing neo-bank in the world. It grows by 100000–120000 clients monthly. In October 2017, the bank started invite-only beta testing and finished it in a month.

As a client, you only need to download the application from the App Store or Google Play, take photos of your documents: passport and personal tax number, and then have the card delivered (though it’s not even necessary).

The Mono mobile app offers various banking services: money transfers, paying utility bills, credits, etc. It was the first bank that launched Apple Pay in Ukraine.

What’s more, clients can get cash back on their purchases, it is a very attractive option. The customers can choose 2 categories to receive cashback, which can be from 1% to 20 % of their expenditures.

As Oleg Gorokhovsky, a Monobank co-founder explains, they work closely with neural networks, mathematical models, and open data, as well as monitor clients’ behavior to determine accurately risk parameters and credit limits, to avoid default.

What else is attractive to the customers, it’s a little humor in the app from the conservative banking sector. Monobank has a character in the app — a cat — who runs the show.

In 2022 Monobank grew its client base from 5 to 6.7 million and laid the ground to launch a similar project in Poland, so Ukrainians extend their innovation.

Air Alert

When the Russian invasion started, the air raid notification system became a burning problem for many cities and villages, where the signal was not heard.

Monitoring the Regional State Administration notifications in messengers was also impossible all the time. So, Stfalcon came up with an idea to create a reliable software solution that would instantly send alerts from the civil defense system and warn people all over Ukraine about the danger. For this solution, we are included in the Google Play WeArePlay Campaign.

This case is unique because many people united to create this complex technical solution, and we did it in just one day. On the second day of the war, the app became the first in the segment of Ukrainian AppStore news, listed by Forbes and Wired. The Air Alert app was developed in cooperation with Ajax Systems and with the Ministry of Digital Transformation support.

Why Ukrainian Digital Expertise Matters

Many Ukrainians had to leave Ukraine because of war and as a result, faced the banking systems of various countries. We have already gotten used to cutting-edge digital solutions in our country, fast and affordable service, but abroad banks turned out to be more regulated, much slower, and too conservative.

Thus, Ukrainian expertise in mobile application development for banking is a precious expertise we can share in terms of introducing technology and the digital environment into the European banking sphere. We have reasons to be proud of Ukrainian online banking.

Ukraine was the pioneer in Article 14 eIDAS usage, which means we submitted a request for electronic trust services mutual recognition between the EU and Ukraine. It resulted in the MRA (mutual recognition agreement) Cookbook issued before the war, however, the move to the integration in the DSM means an advanced alignment with international principles, standards, and regulations on digital practices. Cross-border barriers can be significantly reduced through digital trade.

Access to public services became extremely important during the war, so even in the conditions of Russian aggression, the Ukrainian government relentlessly continued to provide, expand, and digitize its public services. Physical infrastructure reduction and displacement of citizens made it impossible for some people to access in-person services, but Diia has proven effective in responding to the needs of both people and businesses dealing with the invasion consequences.

We are sure there is a crucial need for portable digital identity solutions valid worldwide for people to prove their identity despite the misplacement of critical documents or moving across borders. So, as Ukraine is an acknowledged world champion in being digital, we will be honored to share our experience and solutions with the world.

Final Thoughts

The IT industry in Ukraine has demonstrated extraordinary resilience in the conditions of war. All these 3 products we spoke about today testify to the strong potential and talent of Ukrainian entrepreneurs who can achieve success even in challenging conditions. It has not only remained the only industry increasing exports (by 10%) and generating earnings in the economy but also maintained positive growth dynamics. Almost 100% of Ukrainian IT companies continue working, and 84% of IT specialists in Ukraine returned to working full-time in just a month. 91% of IT specialists actively help the Ukrainian Army, being highly motivated to bring benefit to their Motherland and victory.