TOTAL NUMBER OF BUSINESSES

BREAKDOWN OF BUSINESSES IN SWEDEN

Number of businesses with no employee (sole trader)

• 2018 - 889,748 
• 2017 - 884,654 
• 2016 - 884,218 
• 2015 - 865,122 
• 2014 - 852,470 

Number of businesses with less than ten Employees (1-9)

• 2018 - 292,154 
• 2017 - 280,828 
• 2016 - 270,517 
• 2015 - 268,290 
• 2014 - 262,301 

Number of businesses with less than 200 employees (10-199)

• 2018 - 44,846 
• 2017 - 44,196 
• 2016 - 43,375 
• 2015 - 45,392 
• 2014 - 41,646 

Number of businesses with more than 200 employees

• 2018 - 2,106 
• 2017 - 2,039 
• 2016 - 1,996 
• 2015 - 1,925 
• 2014 - 1,932 

NUMBER OF NEW BUSINESSES

• 2017 – 68,113 
• 2016 - 68,793
• 2015 - 64,625
• 2014 - 62,372
• 2013 - 60,528
• In March 2018, 5,208 new businesses were started in Sweden of which 1,298 were sole traders.
• The number of new sole traders in Sweden was 15,666 and 14,969 in 2017 and 2016 respectively.

NUMBER OF businesses with annual turnover of less than 50 million EUR

•  8,928 

RESEARCH STRATEGY

Calculation

Estimation of the number of businesses with less than ten employees

• Businesses with less than ten employees = business with one to four employees + businesses with five to nine employees
• 2018 = 248,324 + 43,830 = 292,154
• 2017 = 237,272 + 43,556 = 280,828
• 2016 = 227,101 + 43,416 = 270,517
• 2015 = 224,993 + 43,297 = 268,290
• 2014 = 219,515 + 42,786 = 262,301

Estimation of the number of businesses with less than 200 employees (10-199)

• Businesses with less than 200 employees = businesses with 10 to 19 employees + businesses with 20 to 49 employees + businesses with 50 to 99 employees + businesses with 100 to 199 employees
• 2018 = 24,116 + 14,304 + 4,439 + 1,987 = 44,846
• 2017 = 23,803 + 14,115 + 4,322 + 1,956 = 44,196
• 2016 = 23,597 + 13,626 + 4,249 + 1,903 = 43,375
• 2015 = 23,157 + 13,337 + 4,042 + 1,856 = 45,392
• 2014 = 22,844 + 13,079 + 3,935 + 1,788 = 41,646

Estimation of Businesses with 200+ employees

• 2018 = 1,132 + 974 = 2,106
• 2017 = 1,084 + 955 = 2,039
• 2016 = 1,056 + 940 = 1,996
• 2015 = 1,032 + 925 = 1,925
• 2014 = 1,012 + 920 = 1,932

Estimation of the total number of businesses in Sweden

• Total number of businesses = number of businesses with zero employee (sole traders) + number of businesses with less than 10 employees + number of businesses with less 200 employees + number of businesses with 200+ employees

• 2018 = 889,748 + 292,154 + 44,846 + 2,1 06 = 1,228,854
• 2017 = 884,654+ 280,828 + 44,196 + 2,039 = 1,211,717
• 2016 = 884,218+ 270,517 + 43,375 + 1,996 = 1,200,106
• 2015 = 865,122 + 268,290 + 45,392 + 1,925 = 1,180,729
• 2014 = 852,470 + 262,301 + 41,646 + 1,932 = 1,158,349

Estimation of the number of businesses with annual turnover of less than 50 million EUR

• Based on Hoovers' business directory of companies and enterprises in Sweden, only 212 businesses have annual revenues greater than 50 million EUR (55.53 million USD). The remaining 8,928 out of 9,140 businesses listed in the business directory have less than 50 million EUR in annual turnover.

HELPFUL FINDINGS

• The number of new businesses registered in Poland in 2016 was 43,523.
• "An enterprise may be a corporation, a quasi- corporation, a non-profit institution, or an unincorporated enterprise."
• In 2018 Poland had 823 companies listed on the stock exchange as can be extracted graphically.
• According to European Fact Sheet, the 2018 SBA listed 1,695,991 as the total number of businesses in Poland as of 2017.
• The total number for the non-financial business economy of microbusinesses or sole trader/proprietor businesses in Poland as of 2017 was 1,623,093 and this represented 93.1% of the total businesses in Poland.
• The total number of persons employed in Poland by these micro-businesses for the non-financial business economy is 3,445,505 million people.
• Microbusiness for the non-financial business economy has 1,623,093 enterprises in Poland with 3,445,505 employees.
• Small Businesses for the non-financial business economy has 54,781 enterprises in Poland with 1,177,609 employees.
• Medium-sized businesses for the non-financial business economy has 14,821 enterprises in Poland with 1,585,267 employees.
• Large businesses for the non-financial business economy has 3,296 enterprises in Poland with 2,907,128 employees.
• "In 2016, the non-financial business economy in Poland in had 1,620,219 with firms that had 0 to 9 employees which are likely to be sole proprietorship firms."
• "In 2016, there were 3,315 enterprises with 250 employees or more in Poland."

RESEARCH STRATEGY

CHALLENGER DIGITAL BANKS OFFERING BANKING SERVICES TO BUSINESSES IN SWEDEN:

#1. Lunar Way

• Website: Lunar Way 
• "Lunar Way Business is everything you need for your business all in one place. You get an account, card, fixed pricing, and features to handle your finances. Everything so you can spend your time on what really matters — your business."
• "We've made it simple and fast for you to handle your business's finances so you can focus on what you do best."
• "Experience how simple banking should be".
• "Whether you are a consultant, freelancer or entrepreneur."
• Lunar Way, was launched in Sweden in 2018.
• Lunar Way is headquartered in Aarhus, Denmark.

#2. N26

• Website: N26 
• "N26 Business is the free bank account for freelancers and the self-employed. Earn 0.1% cashback on all purchases you make, and enjoy free card payments worldwide."
• "You don’t have to deposit a certain amount or meet earning threshold requirements, so you can open an account even if you’re just starting out."
• "#client, #office, #bizness… create your own personal hashtags and attach them to your transactions to organize them better."
• "The N26 online business bank account uses artificial intelligence to automatically categorize your spending. Forget clunky spreadsheets—it’s all there in a clear overview in the app."
• N26 entered Sweden market in 2018.
• N26 is headquartered in Berlin, Germany.

#3. Revolut

Research Strategy:

Findings

ING

•  https://www.ing.pl/ 
• ING has been called a digital banking leader in Poland, and their headquarters are located in Katowice. 
• ING has a 2019 market penetration of over 40% of the largest Polish businesses.
• ING boasts of having one of the best internet banking systems in Poland.
• ING is an established financial brand in Poland that provides a full range of products including arranging bonds, asset based lending, custody, and advisory services.
• ING also offers client-focused, single point of contact tailored services.
• ING has a network of product specialists and industry experts.

mBank

•  https://www.mbank.pl/ 
• mBank has been named a digital banking leader in Poland, and their headquarters are located in Warsaw.
• mBank has a 2019 market share penetration of 10.5-7.1% for deposits and loans to all Polish businesses.
• mBank was the first fully internet-based bank in Poland.
• mBank offers a wide range of services to meet the needs of their business clients in Poland.
• mBank also offers specialized digital banking services for their business clients like mElements and mAcclerator.
• mBank was a laureate of the Financing Bank of the Year award this year of the Polish Private Equity and Venture Capital Association for their achievements on the Polish private equity/venture capital market.

PKO Bank Polski

•  www.pkobp.pl 
• PKO Bank Polski was recognized in 2019 as having created the best digital mobile banking app for the second year in a row, and their headquarters are located in Warsaw, Poland.
• PKO Bank Polski had a 2018 market share penetration of 15.2%-12.1% for deposits and loans for all Polish businesses.
• PKO Bank Polski is an undisputed leader in mobile banking with a 25% market share in Poland.
• PKO Bank Polski offers a wide variety of services to meet the needs of their business clients in Poland.
• PKO Bank Polski also offers specialized digital banking services for their business clients like E-Lawyer and E-Accountant.
• PKO Bank Polski was awarded The Heart Corporation Innovations award in 2018 for best digital transformation team.

Research Strategy

GOOGLE PAY USERS IN SWEDEN

• The number of Google Pay card holders in Sweden is 70,000.

GOOGLE PAY PAYMENTS BY VALUE

• Google pay transaction volume by value worldwide is $102 billion.
• There are about 24 million Google pay users in the world.
• From the above, we can calculate the % share of the number of Google Pay card holders in Sweden = (70,000 / 24 million) x 100 = (70,000 / 24,000,000) x 100 =0.29%.
• Assuming this share to be true for the Google Pay payments by value, we can calculate the transaction volume for Sweden by Google pay users = 0.29% of $102 billion = $0.2958 billion or 266.62 million Euro.
• The Number of Google pay payments by value (EUR) in this country would be roughly about 266.62 million Euro. 

GOOGLE PAY PAYMENTS BY VOLUME

• Google, which recently re branded its payment offering from Tez to Google Pay, has 25 million monthly active users who have collectively carried out about 860 million transactions over the past year.
• From the above, we can calculate the number of Google pay payments by volume in Sweden. As Google Pay users percentage share in Sweden out of world's users in 0.29%, we can calculate the number of Google pay payments by volume in Sweden to be = 0.29% of the number of world's Google pay transactions = 0.29% of 860 million = 2.49 million. 
• Therefore, the number of Google pay payments by volume would be roughly about 2.49 million in Sweden.

MERCHANTS ACCEPTING GOOGLE PAY

• Based on a recently published article by Business Insider, 2019, expanding its collaboration with PayPal allows Google Pay to offer a streamlined and popular payment option.
• Later, Google Pay may be able to recruit more of PayPal's 277 million active accounts to its service by promising a faster, more convenient checkout process that still uses PayPal.
• This integration could also help PayPal by connecting it with Google Pay merchants it hasn't worked with before, helping it grows its valuable merchant base, which comprises just 8% of the firm's total users but represents 90% of its volume.
• So, from the above, the merchant base of Google Pay "comprises just 8% of the firm's total users" and the total number of Google Pay users in Sweden is about 70,000.
• Therefore, we can calculate the number of merchants accepting Google Pay in Sweden = 8% of 70,000 = 5,600.
• So, the number of merchants accepting Google Pay in Sweden would be about 5,600. 

HELPFUL FINDINGS

• In November 2018, Google launched its mobile payment solution Google Pay in Sweden.
•  14% of Google Pay users have enrolled, 10% have used and 3% use it weekly.
•  31% of internet users prefer mobile payments including Google Pay.
• Google Pay in the Scandinavian states of Norway, Denmark, Finland and Sweden is now officially available, opening up the service to millions within the Nordic nations who previously only had access to Apple Pay for mobile payments, having launched within the region earlier this summer.

YOUR RESEARCH TEAM APPLIED THE FOLLOWING STRATEGY

KEY FINDINGS

• The number of Google Pay users in Poland is 300,000.
• The number of Google Pay payments by volume is 401,379 per year.
• The number of Google Pay payments by value is EUR 92,000,000.
• The number of merchants accepting Google Pay in Poland is 400,000.

ADDITIONAL FINDINGS

• In 2018, the average value of transaction per user in the Mobile POS Payments segment was $254.3 or EUR 229.21. 
• The total annual card payment in Poland is EUR 4,600,000,000.

Research Strategy:

HELPFUL FINDINGS

• Apple only recently launched Apple Pay in Poland and saw a massive adoption of the product by users in the country.
• According to The Mac Observer, Google Pay had about 300,000 users in 2018 after its launch in 2016, and it took Google Pay about four months to reach 25,000 users in Poland. However, it took Apple Pay ten days to reach about 200,000 users.
• With 64% of people living in Poland using smartphones, Android has a market share of about 95% while iOS has a share of about 2.32%.
• There are 253 million Apple Pay users globally.
• There have been more than 10 billion Apple Pay transactions in 2019.
• Apple Pay has a 70% share of the global card payment volume.
• In 2017, it was estimated that about 87 million people used the Apple Pay app worldwide.

RESEARCH STRATEGY

GENERAL OVERVIEW ABOUT MOBILE PAYMENTS IN SWEDEN

• In early 2017, Apple Pay announced that it would initiate a product launch in four nations, namely the United Arab Emirates, Finland, Sweden, and Denmark, before the year ended.
• Apple Pay was officially launched in Sweden on October 23, 2017. The company conducted this move as part of its expansion.
• Apple Pay could be employed with both credit and debit cards from ST1 and Nordea in Sweden and Finland.
• In 2018, Sweden was one of two nations in Europe with the highest proximity mobile payments, as well as the highest proportion of transactions conducted via cashless methods. Sweden is considered to be a significant industry player and mobile payments in the country are usually utilized to purchase goods in stores and business locations.
• During its launch in Sweden, Nordea Bank was the first financial institution in the nation to promote Apple Pay.
• According to Statista, in 2017, the most popular mobile payment services in Sweden are the following:
•  75% of mobile payment users preferred Swish.
•  14% of mobile payment users preferred Paypal Mobile.
•  3% of mobile payment users preferred MyWallet.
•  5% of mobile payment users preferred other mobile payment services.
•  21% of the respondents did not utilize any mobile payment services.
• Sweden is considered to be one of the most cashless countries in Europe. Therefore, the nation is one of the top countries for the use of mobile payment apps.
• One of the most widely used mobile payment applications in Sweden, Swish, had approximately 5.5 million users in 2017. In 2019, that figure grew to more than 7 million.

MOBILE PAYMENT USAGE TRENDING IN SWEDEN

• Mobile payment methods, such as Swish, in Sweden are becoming more popular for online shopping.
• As stated by Statista, "To be precise, the share of consumers who used such apps weekly raised from one percent in 2013, to 25 percent as of 2017. There was a particularly big increase from 2015 to 2017, when the share of consumers using mobile payment apps grew by nine percent each year."

APPLE PAY

• Apple Pay dominated the market in 2018, beating Google Pay and Samsung Pay due to a rise in the number of users.
• Samsung Pay made up around 17% of mobile wallet transactions, while Google Pay comprised 6%. However, Apple Pay accounted for more than two-thirds (77%) mobile wallet transactions.
• According to Anita Solaman, the Director of debit management at Auriemma, the notably high rate of adoption for debit card users may be connected to demographics as Apple customers are typically younger, a group that is more inclined to be users of debit cards.

GLOBAL APPLE PAY USERS

• In 2016, there were 62 million Apple Pay users, globally.
• According to Statista, in 2017, there were 127 million Apple Pay users, globally.
• In the year 2018, there were 383 million Apple Pay users, globally.
• As reported by Merchant Machine, in the United Kingdom, around 24% of the mobile payment users utilize Apple Pay.
• According to 9to5mac, "Apple Pay is supported by a limited number of Nordic banks. Clearhaus says that in all it supports 7,500 merchants in 33 countries, with around two-thirds of them in Apple Pay countries."

Research Strategy:

INDICATORS OF HOW COMMON DIGITAL BANKING IN SWEDEN

• According to Eurostat, Sweden is known as the fourth most common country that uses digital banking among EU member states.
• While only 51% of adult Europeans use digital banking, 86% of people aged 16 to 74 in Sweden are using digital banking.
• Based on a 2018 report by Copenhagen Economics, the Swedish banking sector is one of the most digitized sectors in Europe.
• Copenhagen Economics also reported that Sweden is in the top three among the top European countries in digital banking readiness index with 55 points, alongside Denmark and Netherlands with the same index value in 2016.
•  Digital banking allows Swedish banks to reduce operational costs.
• Digital banking has also made banking easier for the average Swedish customers in terms of costs and having several bank accounts.
• According to SPGlobal, "Sweden is among the world's leading countries in the diffusion and use of digital technology, delivering on the country's national digital strategy."
• SPGlobal also believes that "Swedish banks are well-equipped to cope with the challenges of digitization, thanks to lean structures and cost efficiency, and innovation through cooperation among leading banks and the government has proven successful against disruption."
• As Sweden is gradually evolving into "a cashless society," Swedish banks need to speed up the pace of innovations in the digital banking market.
• The banking sector in Sweden started to transform into online and digital interactions since a decade ago, in response to customer preference alteration.
• Based on a 2017 survey by MasterCard, 56% of respondents have a positive attitude toward the digitization of banking.
• The majority of respondents also mentioned that high availability, time-saving, and simple and easy to use are among the biggest advantages of digital banking.
• Based on the same survey, the majority of respondents also stated that the most important criteria for using digital banking are convenience, security, and safety.

HOW PEOPLE ACCESS DIGITAL BANKING

• According to SPGlobal, mobile banking users are increasingly using checking accounts.
• Based on a chart by SPGlobal, there are more than 130 million logins in mobile banking.
• Meanwhile, there are only 60 million logins for internet banking.
• With the 21% growth between 2016 and 2018, Sweden is ranked the second fastest-growing market in global mobile banking usage as a proportion of online consumers.
• Globaldata also reveals that mobile banking is increasingly being used to make transactions in Sweden, with more than 16 million transactions on 2018 Q3.

RESEARCH STRATEGY

HOW COMMON DIGITAL BANKING IS IN POLAND

• According to STX Next, digital banking in Poland is thriving, with many new apps and trends being released in the market regularly.

• The popularity of online and mobile banking in Poland continues to grow and is causing bank networks to shrink rapidly.

• Banks are increasingly investing in new digital banking technologies and all major banks in Poland offer online services, from cash transfers and deposits to balance-cheque functions. Nearly all banks in Poland have also launched digital transformation programs, incubators, and accelerators.

• People in Poland love digital banking with a MasterCard study revealing that over 91% of Poles who responded "make online payments at least once a month." This figure is higher than the European average for those who make online payments which is 85%.

• According to the Polish Bank Association, around 15.5 million Poles use online banking services at least once a month, with mobile phone technology banking widely spread as well.

• The European Banking Federation states that at the end of 2017, 35.5 million Poles had access to online banking services.

• According to Statista, in 2018, 44% of all Poles used the internet for online banking, with usage being higher, at 57%, among people who had used the internet within the last three months.

• About 60% of smartphone owners in Poland have used mobile banking, the third-highest figure in Europe.

• A Deloitte’s CEE Fintech report valued Poland's Fintech market at nearly €860 million, putting the country in the lead in that part of Europe. The country's Fintech market primarily serves electronic payment methods and financial platforms.

• Also, research conducted by Deloitte concluded that Poland is among the leading countries in digital banking, with Polish banks mBank, ING, and Bank Millenium named as digital leaders.

• Approximately 100 companies are innovating in the Polish FinTech, and the areas they work in include electronic payments, loans, credits, financial platforms, and transactions. The major domains operated by Polish FinTech companies are financial platforms and electronic payments.

HOW PEOPLE ACCESS DIGITAL BANKING

• People in Poland access digital banking using digital banking apps. An example is the IKO mobile app which was created by PKO Bank Polski to enable its customers to conveniently manage their accounts and make bank transactions, including cardless payments, using their phones.

•  Mobile banking applications are regularly being used by Poles to transfers money, check account balances, open an account, apply for a loan, and contact bank staff via audio or video call.

• According to Central European Financial Observer, over a third of Polish bank customers or 38% access online banking services using a smartphone. The number of Polish bank customers with a mobile banking application and who use it at least once a month is 6.27 million.

• Polish banks such as mBank have allowed their customers to access digital banking money transfers via Facebook and mobile phones since five years ago, an innovation that is only currently gaining popularity among other large European banks. mBank customers also get loan approvals in 30 seconds via their iPhones.

• Poles also access digital banking via website visits. For example, mBank has an average web traffic score of 73, with it's main website, mBank.pl, getting more than 60% of traffic from direct visitors.

RESEARCH STRATEGY

TREND 1: PRODUCT LICENSING

• Description: Services such as account aggregation (AIS) and payment initiation (PIS) applications are integrated into a single, cloud-based platform through Application Programming Interface (API) Integration. Providers can combine multiple product offerings into one platform and license the package out to retail banks and other businesses.
• Why is it trending? Many financial services providers began in the consumer-facing space, developed robust technology, and now look to scale their business. A natural progression is to offer the same, trusted underlying technology to banks and other businesses.
• Example: First launched in 2012 Tink began as a consumer-facing finance App and has since repositioned its offering and now licenses its products to a number of open banking providers. The company’s technology is already integrated with banks such as BNP Paribas Fortis, ABN AMRO and Nordea.

TREND 2: WEB-BASED INVOICING AND PAYMENT SOFTWARE

• Description: Similar to the account aggregation services discussed earlier, API integration can also provide solutions for generating and sending invoices, payment acceptance, recurring payments, and sending payment alerts.
• Why is it trending? A study has shown that 76 percent of customers claim the invoice to be their only point of contact with their supplier. For these energy, telco, or insurance companies the payment is the most important time to improve the customer experience.
• Example: Billogram caters to the "need of increased customer engagement for companies with recurring payments, who offer products/services where the value is often taken for granted by customers."

TREND 3: BEHAVIORAL BIOMETRICS

• Description: Machine learning based authentication solutions that detect anomalies in keyboard/mouse or environment behavior to identify unauthorized users. Technology is based on patented continuous authentication verification technology.
• Why is it trending? Behavioral biometrics solutions have proven to significantly reduce expenses related to fraud, false positive, and call center costs.
• Example: BehavioSec has a well-established reputation in behavioral biometrics research and development and is trusted by industry leaders such as Cisco and Gartner.

TREND 4: CROWDFUNDING

• Description: Crowdfunding, or peer-to-peer (P2P) lending, connects investors with borrowers through an online marketplace. Sweden is home to multiple crowdfunding platforms, with some specializing in certain industries such as real estate investing.
• Why is it trending? 99 percent of companies in Sweden are listed as small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Sweden was quick to embrace P2P lending and is today home to region’s top crowdfunding platforms. “As a lending marketplace platform the conditions in Sweden are extremely good for our operations,” said Erika Eliasson, chief investor relations officer at Lendify, a P2P lending platform based in Stockholm.
• Example: Lendify claims to be the largest P2P lending platform in Sweden, and in 2017 was appointed one of the world’s 100 leading fintech innovators by KPMG.

TREND 5: BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY

• Description: Blockchain is a distributed ledger recording transactions of digital ownership in a verifiable and permanent way. A blockchain ledger is managed by a peer-to-peer network of computers and governed by a common protocol.
• Why is it trending? The possibilities with blockchain technology are wide-ranging, spanning the finance, social media, real estate, and insurance sectors.
• Example: The Stockholm Blockchain Group advises and implements blockchain technology for companies and institutions.

RESEARCH STRATEGY

CLOUD BANKING

DESCRIPTION

• Business units and IT executives upgrade with an enterprise-level cloud solution which will be mix and match hybrid and multi-cloud solutions based on their organizational needs, maturity, and readiness; most organizations choose a multi-cloud approach.
• A public cloud provides products-as-a-service offerings that can help banks implement business operation models to improve revenue generation, customer insights; contain costs, deliver market-relevant products quickly and efficiently, and help monetize enterprise data assets.

WHY CLOUD BANKING IS A TREND

• According to Deloitte, “Companies across the global financial services industry have been on the public cloud journey for the last three-to-five years, with tremendous acceleration over the past 12–18 months.”
• IBM and other major cloud computing companies support banks and help them stay compliant with the recommendations of the European Banking Authority on cloud computing.
• Public cloud solutions are expected to dominate the market over the next decade, while business constraints such as security concerns and the limitations of existing infrastructure make it difficult for companies to fully adopt the public cloud.

A COMPANY DRIVING THE TREND

• Idea Bank, Poland, offers an entire financial ecosystem for their clients, from cloud-based internet banking to an Uber-style ATM.
• Idea Bank also won an award for the best innovation at BAI Retail Delivery in 2015 LINK, and this was the most notable feature for both the EFMA and BAI Awards.

BLIK

DESCRIPTION

•  The Polish Payment Standard (PPS) was created by a tie-up between six Polish banking institutions; it has embedded BLIK into banking apps so that customers can transfer money, use ATMs, and use it to pay online or in stores.
•  BLIK offers one-click purchasing, ATM withdrawals and peer-to-peer payments via smartphones.
• The success of BLIK also highlights the “readiness of the Polish consumer to migrate to digital-only payment options.”

WHY BLIK IS A TREND

•  BLIK provides its users, both consumers and merchants, with contactless payment services at all Mastercard-branded payment terminals across the globe, like Mastercard.
• BLIK is taking advantage of Mastercard virtual debit cards, which are tokenized by Mastercard Digital Enablement Service (MDES), to offer its services.
• BLIK's services will enable its customers to access the most convenient point of sale payment experiences throughout the world, as per the Polish Payment Standard.
• BLIK is very popular in Poland, with 91 million transactions completed in 2018.

COMPANIES DRIVING THE TREND

• Poland’s BLIK Partners With Mastercard, Netflix And Uber For Payments.
• According to Reuters, “people who use Polish payment system BLIK will soon be able to pay for things like Netflix and Uber with it.”
• mBank of Poland also offers BLIK services at no additional fees, and can be used on any telephone with the mobile application installed.
• mBank also organized BLIKOMANIA in 2019, which gives prizes to consumers using the feature the most.

ONLINE AND MOBILE BANKING

DESCRIPTION

• The investment expenditure of banks on new technologies is expected to rise in 2019, due to the implementation of PSD 2, that is, a directive changing the landscape of payment services.
• The increase will also be seen due to the creation of the Polish API standard, that is, a unified interface for access to bank accounts for third parties.
•  Polish banks are also starting to monetize the electronic tools provided to their clients.
• All major Polish banks offer online services, from balance-cheque functions to cash transfers and deposits. These are available in the national currency, the Polish zloty (PLN) and foreign currencies.

WHY ONLINE AND MOBILE BANKING IS A TREND

• According to Business Insider Intelligence, 56% of credit unions surveyed saw an annual increase in mobile wallet adoption, while 53% saw an increase in transactions.
•  Over 7 million Polish account holders regularly used mobile banking applications in 2018, according to the Polish Banking Association.

COMPANIES DRIVING THE TREND

• PKO Bank Polski’s IKO mobile banking application was the “best on offer”, for the second time in a row, according to Britain’s Retail Banker International magazine’s global ranking.
•  Nine million people downloaded mobile applications, and are using locally developed services like Blik.

VOICE BANKING

DESCRIPTION

• The continued rise of voice assistants, like Alexa, is influencing another trend in voice banking.
• Voice interaction with digital touchpoints could generate about $3 billion in annual cost savings.
• With technology companies applying for banking licenses and banks becoming more technological, the market for retail banking is intensifying, and voice banking is a most likely solution to how consumers will interact with, and use financial products.
• Voice interaction will effectively convert human input into standardized data structures/process automation via APIs and RPA/IPA (robotic and intelligent process automation) to integrate customer requests with core banking systems without significant technology investments.

WHY VOICE BANKING IS A TREND

• Voice-interaction devices, like Alexa, had sales of over 100 million units in the first three years of their availability; 52% of all smart speaker owners use their devices daily.
•  Twenty to thirty per cent of all mobile phone searches are currently done by voice. This figure is expected to increase to over 50% by 2020.

A COMPANY DRIVING THE TREND

• PKO BP is working on a “Talk to IKO” service option, which will enable the application and other new services to be steered by voice, that is, voice banking.

CONVERSATIONAL BANKING/CHATBOTS

DESCRIPTION

• Chatbots, or Virtual Assistants, “simulate the activities of agents in the Call Center” and can duplicate the human way of learning questions and specific languages, which is used to operate on the known data functioning on all kinds of chat applications.
• The financial sector is using Chatbots for customer service automation, quickly replacing traditional channels such as toll-free lines or application forms.
• Customers also appreciate virtual assistants because they solve their problems instantly.
• Companies providing financial services are focused on supporting clients’ active money management through applications-based on communication technologies.
• “Forward-looking financial institutions” are investing in chatbots to deliver ‘contextual insights’ to the right person at the right time and through the preferred channels.
• Financial institutions have begun transitioning to ‘conversational banking’ and are viewing chatbots as “new age contact centre executives, minimising TAT and costs”.

WHY CONVERSATIONSL BANKING/CHATBOTS IS A TREND

• According to eMarketer, 43% of consumers of a survey prefer to address any issues they have with their banking provider via chatbots, more than visiting a branch (35%) or finding the answer on a website (35%).
•  About 90% of bank-related interactions will be automated by 2022.
• Banks are likely to save an estimated $0.60 on average per chatbot interaction, and address more customer questions.

A COMPANY DRIVING THE TREND

• Aviva Investors’ Chatbot: Virtual Assistant, Aviva24, is available through the website and acts as an investment advisor.
• The Polish-speaking Chatbot is a part of the help centre, responsible for the chat channel, which supports the voice helpline and application forms.
• The chatbot has a built-in database of pre-ready answers, which it constantly uses to resolve 30-60% of the most common customer inquiries.

RESEARCH STRATEGY

CO-WORKING SPACE PROVIDERS IN SWEDEN

• Co-working space operators with three or more locations in Sweden include The Park, Mindpark, 7A, Helio, and Regus.
• The Park operates co-working spaces in three locations in Stockholm (link to website). They are located in areas such as Hälsingegatan, Magnus Ladulåsgatan, and Sveavägen.
• Mindpark operates co-working spaces in three locations in southern Sweden (link to website). They are located in cities such as Malmö, Helsingborg, and Lund.
• 7A operates co-working spaces in three locations in Stockholm (link to website). They are located in areas such as Strandvägen, Vasagatan, and Norrtullsgatan.
• Helio operates co-working spaces in eight locations in Stockholm (link to website). They are located in areas such as Grev Turegatan, Kista, Hötorget, and others.
• Regus operates co-working spaces in 17 locations across Sweden (link to website). They are located in cities such as Stockholm, Solna, Gothenburg, and Malmö.
• Over 60 co-working space providers such as Impact Hub, Box Space, and others, operate only one location in Sweden. Some operators such as Embassy House and No. 18 operate two locations in Sweden.
• Global co-working space operators such as WeWork and Spaces operate only one location in Sweden.
• According to a 2019 report published by the Cushman & Wakefield, Stockholm was ranked third on the European Coworking Hotspot Index.

RESEARCH STRATEGY

REAKTOR

• Reaktor's website can be accessed here.

IDEA HUB

• Idea Hub's website can be accessed here.

CLOCKWORK

• Clockwork's website can be accessed here.

Research Strategy:

DIGITAL BANKING SERVICES — SWEDEN

•  Klarna is one of Europe's largest banks, located in Sweden. The company's main line of business is providing digital payment services to e-commerce businesses.
• Klarna handles 40% of all Swedish online transactions.
•  iZettle is a Swedish E-Money Institution.
• The company provides small businesses with digital banking services.
• POS and general digital transactions are some of the services it offers.
• The company was bought by PayPal in 2018.
• According to di.se, the Swedish banking sector is far behind when compared to other European countries in terms of digital banking services.
• According to another report by spglobal.com, Sweden is among the world's leading countries in terms of industrial use of digital technologies.
• The biggest Swedish industries in terms of the number of companies include services industry, agriculture, forestry, fishing, law, economics, science and technology, manufacturing, retail, and construction.

RESEARCH STRATEGY

FINANCIAL INDUSTRY/SECTOR

• According to Braincode digital agency, the financial platform industry (financial services industry) is one of the industries with the highest uptake of digital business banking services in Poland.
• The financial services industry represents about 25% of business organizations using Fintech services in Poland.
• The Fintech revolution across the world is democratizing payment solutions, advancing digital banking services, and shaking "up the world of payments and investments."
• Poland represents the largest FinTech market existing in Central and Eastern Europe.
• The Polish Fintech market is valued at €856 million.
• It is the 12th most competitive and significant Financial Centre in Central and Eastern Europe and is rated 45th in the world.
• Fintechs are known to offer "digital-only" banking services.

CROWDFUNDING & P2P LENDING INDUSTRY/SECTOR

• The crowdfunding & P2P lending industry/sector is one of the industries with the highest uptake of digital business banking services in Poland.
• About 13% of businesses using Fintech services in Poland are from the financial service's industry.

DIGITAL & MOBILE PAYMENTS INDUSTRY/SECTOR

• The digital & mobile payment industry/sector is one of the industries with the highest uptake of digital business banking services in Poland.
•  About 13% of businesses using Fintech services in Poland are from the digital & mobile payments industry/sector.

BIG DATA ANALYTICS & MACHINE LEARNING INDUSTRY/SECTOR

• The big data analytics & machine learning industry/sector is one of the industries with the highest uptake of digital business banking services in Poland.
• About 13% of businesses in Poland using Fintech services are from the big data analytics & machine learning industry.

PERSONAL FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT INDUSTRY/SECTOR

• The personal financial management industry/sector is one of the industries with the highest uptake of digital business banking services in Poland.
• About 6% of businesses in Poland using Fintech services are from the financial management industry.

CRYPTOCURRENCY INDUSTRY/SECTOR

• The cryptocurrency industry/sector is one of the industries with the highest uptake of digital business banking services in Poland.
• About 6% of businesses in Poland using Fintech services are from the cryptocurrency industry.

METHODOLOGY

ANYFIN

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

• This is the link to Anyfin's official website.

WHAT THEY DO

• Anyfin is a loan refinancing platform that operates on iOS and Android devices exclusively. Anyfin offers its services to individuals with existing installments, private loans or credit cards available for download on iOS and Android devices exclusively.

• Through the use of a mobile BankID, or simply sending a picture to Anyfin on their app, customers are presented with an offer consisting of lower interest rates and good terms. When, or if, a customer chooses to accept the offer, Anyfin pays off the remaining credit and transfers the customers' debt to them.

• The smart technology of Artificial Intelligence is what allows Anyfin to provide this service in such an efficient manner and what makes the process so much simpler for the customer.

FUNDING

• In 2019, Anyfin received a combined total of $14.95 million in series A funding during the month of May. This is supported by this source and this source. 

BEHAVIOSEC

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

• Here is the link to their official website.

WHAT THEY DO

• BehavioSec currently provides advanced, continuous authentication security services to more than 2,000 companies across the globe Support to this can also be found here.

• Their Behavioral Biometrics platform safeguards millions of users, equaling billions of transactions, by reducing the need for manual review during the transaction process. This use of continuous authentication has greatly reduced the frequency in which consumers are reporting digital fraud alerts to companies.

• By integrating BehavioSec’s Behavioral platform with their applications, users are able to experience transparent authentication that allows for the one-time use of passwords, tokens, or other biometrics.

FUNDING

• During 2018, BehavioSec received $17.5 million in series B funding.

BILLOGRAM

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

• Link to Billogram's official website.

WHAT THEY DO

• Billogram is an innovative tool designed to assist businesses and enterprises in making payments, invoicing, and communicating with their customers a seamless process. This source also gives support.

• In addition to offering these services to businesses and enterprises, Billogram also offers services intended to aid companies in successfully increasing customer engagement and collect customer data.

FUNDING

• Billogram received $4.1 million in series A funding earlier this year in April. Support to this can also be found here.

DREAMS

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

• This the link to the official website of Dreams.

WHAT THEY DO

• Dreams is an iOS and Android application that allows users to save and invest money based on goal setting, habit tracking, or “dreaming”.

• This method of saving and investing is reported to greatly improve financial literacy by up to 73% in users and increase the long-term saving habits of users at 83%.

• The purpose of this method of saving and investing effectively is to help users maintain a healthy dose of behavior by providing them with the resources needed to keep their emotions in balance with their rationality.

FUNDING

• A total of $5.7 million in series A funding was received by Dreams in 2019.

HEDVIG

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

• This is the link to Hedvig's official website.

WHAT THEY DO

• Hedvig is a startup insurance company that offers its services strictly through the use of its app. Using automation and machine learning, Hedvig provides its customers with all the tools necessary to purchase home insurance, pay premiums, report an accident, file a claim, and receive cash compensation in a matter of minutes via their app.

• Hedvig is unique from typical insurance companies, not only in the fact that they rely entirely on a chatbot and application to provide quality customer service and to communicate with their customers, but they are also the only insurance company in the world who takes any remaining, left-over, money from claims, and donates it to the customer's charity of choice.

FUNDING

• Hedvig received $3.37 million in series A funding during 2018.

MINNA TECHNOLOGIES

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

• This is the link to the official website of Minna Technologies.

WHAT THEY DO

• Minna Technologies offers a subscription management platform, with a goal to provide retail banks with the best “digital banking experience” possible. This source also supports this statement.

• To achieve this goal, Minna Technologies has equipped their “Mina Platform”, with four key services necessary in ensuring the management of subscriptions services remains effortless for consumer use.

• These key services consist of Subscription Monitoring, Subscription Cancellation, Subscription Investment, and Bank Product Improvement.

• More than 10 million users and major banks located across Sweden, Denmark, and Finland, currently use Minna Technologies products. This claim is corroborated by this source.

FUNDING

• In 2019, Minna Technologies received $6.27 million in Series A funding.

MITIGRAM

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

• Link to Mitigram's official website.

WHAT THEY DO

• Mitigram is a global industry leading online platform with the specific purpose of offering an efficient and collaborative way for large corporations to securely interact and negotiate with their financial institutions on the subjects of risk mitigation, bonding and guarantees, and trade finance.

• In addition, Mitigram’s platform also provides a way for banks to communicate with each other, as well as exchange information with non-bank financial institutions, to meet the needs for discussing trade finance.

• Mitigram’s platform helps all parties understand market pricing better.

FUNDING

• During the year of 2018, Mitigram received $5.8 million in Series A funding.  

• A total of $10.8 million in Series B funding was received by Mitigram during 2019. This source also supports the funding claims for 2018 and 2019.

P.F.C.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

• This is the official website for P.F.C.

WHAT THEY DO

• P.F.C. offers its services through an application paired with the use of a contactless MasterCard, provided for free, whose main goal is to help customers keep track of their money and gain insights into how they are spending their money.

• This application uses automatic categorization to track where and how money is being spent and allows users to construct a personal budget based on the insights derived from the data collected.

FUNDING

• In 2019, P.F.C. received $5.64 million in Series A funding.

TINK

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

• This is the link to Tink's official website.

WHAT THEY DO

• Tink is a platform designed to provide banks and financial institutions with innovative plug and play technology that can be tailored to meet the needs of their customers.

• This application allows bankers to provide personal management services, data enrichment, account aggregation, and payment initiation services to their customers.

• In addition, Tink also provides its users with insights from Europe's top bankers.

FUNDING

• During the year of 2019, Tink received a total of $75.3 million in Series D funding.

TRANSFERGALAXY

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

• Link to TransferGalaxy's official website. (Source 10)

WHAT THEY DO

• TransferGalaxy offers services to individuals in need of a secure way to send money across the globe.

• Their services are completed within seconds and can be sent using a variety of different methods, all with low costs.

FUNDING

• TransferGalaxy received $3.66 million in Series A funding in 2018.

Research Strategy:

1. CREAMFINANCE

•  Funding Received/Year: In 2019, the company received $30 million in series C funding.
•  Description: Creamfinance is one of the reputable consumer loan startups that offers its clients multiple credit loans across international markets. The company accesses applications through analyzing credit intelligence and applicant’s online data from both traditional sources and online platforms.
•  Website: https://www.creamfinance.com

2. AIOCARE

•  Funding Received/Year: This project is funded by the Joint Polish Investment Fund and received $1.1 million in series A funding on February 3, 2018.
•  Description: AioCare is a portable spirometer that lets patients monitor their respiratory functions. This Polish startup produces the personal system that not only monitors but also treats pulmonary ailments.
•  Website: https://aiocare.com/patient

3. IPOS

•  Funding Received/Year: On March 22, 2019, the company reported having raised €360k in series A funding from the president of sCard as well as the founder of Inteligo and former head of PZU.
•  Description: Founded in 2016, iPOS is geared towards simplifying daily routines of merchants through its duo cash terminals. These terminals consist of basic functionalities of payment terminals as well as tracking and offering remote store managing solutions.
•  Website: http://ipos.pl/

4. SHOPLO

•  Funding Received/Year: The company received series A funding in the amount of €730k in February 2019.
•  Description: Founded in 2011, in Warsaw, Shoplo is an established eCommerce platform which helps small scale businesses sell throughout the globe. The company was estimated to be worth ~$4 million in 2017. The startup ownership is said to be, accelerator, subsidiary, and venture capital.
•  Website: https://www.shoplo.com/

5. BRAND24

•  Funding Received/Year: Its latest Series B funding was held on May 6, 2018, raising PLN 1.5 million.
•  Description: Brand24 is a reputation monitoring service that allows customers to track online mentions, hashtags, etc. This company allows instant access to social media mentions that its consumers' businesses depend on.
•  Website: https://brand24.com/

6. CALLPAGE

•  Funding Received/Year: Callpage's last funding round was for series A funding on July 31, 2019; the company raised $4.5 million.
•  Description: Founded in Kraków, this startup assists commercial sites in converting views into sales calls. They accomplish this through an instant callback to real phone numbers.
•  Website: https://www.callpage.io/

7. BUSFOR

•  Funding Received/Year: Busfor received series C funding on May 15, 2019, raising $4.5 million.
•  Description: The company is a startup that operates in the bus transport industry. Currently, it manages more than 300 buses in its inventory and works with more than 500 travel agents. The firm was initially called Gillbus.
•  Website: https://busfor.com/

8. PACKHELP

•  Funding Received/Year: Its series A funding round occurred on March 18, 2019, raising $10 million.
•  Description: Packhelp is a packaging custom solution company for both online and offline firms. The company’s packages include products, eco-friendly mailers, and shipping packages.
•  Website: https://packhelp.com/

9. FinAi 

•  Funding Received/Year: Received series A funding on Feb 8, 2018, of $3.4 million.
•  Description: FinAi is a fintech company that uses big data and innovative technologies while creating an outstanding user experience. Founded in Nov 2016, it supports its customers in making "smarter, easier, faster and more convenient financial decisions.
•  Website: https://www.finai.com/en/

10. TUATARA CAPITAL

•  Funding Received/Year: Its latest funding was series B funding held on May 16, 2019, raising $206.8 million.
•  Description: Tuatara Capital offers businesses user analytics for conversion rate optimization. Its portfolio includes big data real-time analysis to clients.
•  Website: https://tuataracapital.com

Starting a new business in Sweden : Overview

General

•  Statistics Sweden is an exhaustive database on Sweden and its demographics and can be useful to new entrepreneurs.
• There are trade organizations whose websites can help a new entrepreneur collect information on each industry sector before starting a business. Such organization includes The Swedish Hotel and Restaurant Association, The Swedish Trade Federation, The Swedish Construction Federation, The Swedish IT and Telecom Industries, and Lantmännen, a national organization that covers agriculture and farmland resources.
• The Swedish Jobs and Society Foundation provides advice to new businesses.
•  Verksamt website is a website run by three Swedish government authorities, the Companies Registration Office, the Tax Agency and the Agency for Economic and Regional Growth, to help new businesses find advisors in their respective regions.
•  Linkedin and Facebook are the most useful social media in Sweden while doing business.
•   Almi Företagspartner (Almi) is a state-owned company that helps businesses with capital and advice, but their interest rates are higher than banks.

How long the government registration process typically takes

• For registering a business in Sweden, there are 3 procedures involved and the average time it takes to complete these procedures is 7 days.
• For registering a business in Sweden, the paid-in minimum capital requirement is SEK 50,000.
• The first procedure for registration is to "obtain a written statement from a Swedish bank certifying that the total cash amount to be paid for shares has been deposited in an account". This procedure takes 1 day.
• The second procedure involved is to "submit the application to the Swedish Companies Registration Office (Bolagsverket) and obtain the registration certificate". This procedure takes 5 days.
• The third procedure involved is to "register with the Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket)". This procedure takes 1 day.
• Construction permits have 8 procedures, and the time taken to complete them are 117 days.

Challenges associated with the government registration process

• There are 3 procedures involved in getting an electricity connection for a business, and it takes 52 days to complete all the procedures.

How long it takes to setting up business banking accounts

Challenges associated with setting up business banking accounts

Any barriers in terms of setting up an account online

Whether Sweden is generally considered challenging for those setting up a business, as compared to other regions

• Sweden is a high-tax country, and in this country, employees are entitled to generous social benefits and vacation time.
• The Employment Protection Act (Lagen om Anställningsskydd, shortened as LAS) of Sweden mandates that employment contracts are for an indefinite time period unless it is otherwise explicitly stated in the contract, and the new entrepreneur should pay attention to this when drafting the contract.
•  Swedish employment law has many provisions for parental leave, holiday, and pension entitlements.
• As per World Bank's annual ratings, Sweden is ranked 12 among 190 world economies in the ease of doing business.
• The business sentiment index in Sweden has been the lowest since July 2013. In July 2019, it was at 97.4.
•  Corruption index of Sweden is 85 (the scale is 0-100, and the higher the index, the lower the prevalence of corruption) and corruption rank was 3 in July 2019.

Is the government/culture considered friendly to new businesses?

•  About 65% of Swedish people, aged 18 to 64, think there are "good opportunities to start a firm where they live".
• Swedish laws make it difficult for monopolies to grow and dominate the market, thereby presenting a good climate for small and medium businesses to grow.
•  Sweden’s corporate tax rate is 22% as compared to the U.S. tax, which is 39%.
• In Sweden, businesses can have a major share of their income, "taxed as capital income, which has a lower tax rate".

Are there significant challenges?

• In Sweden, it is difficult to recruit a talented workforce from abroad because income taxes for the middle class are very high compared to those in other countries.
• In Sweden, if one does not speak good Swedish, there could be difficulties in doing or starting a business, which includes difficult to understand how things work.

Whether there are any differences in the process of setting up a brick-and-mortar business vs. an online business

Additional Useful Information

• According to Relocate To Sweden website, a website that provides information on migration to Sweden, a residence permit card is processed in Sweden in about 3 weeks.
• Any business in Sweden is identified by a personal identity number (personnummer) which is provided to the entrepreneur by the Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket).
•  Th F-skatt application forms are available only in the Swedish language, and to get them filled in correctly, a non-Swedish speaking person will need the help of an accountant and/or make a personal appointment with the Tax Agency for guidance.
• For those who know Swedish, for F-Skatt registration, the Swedish Tax Agency offers free information meetings in the Swedish language, providing step-by-step instruction.
• The residence requirements for those moving to Sweden to start a company for Nordic citizens (Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Iceland), they do not need to register with the Swedish Migration Agency (Migrationsverket) or apply for a residence permit.
•  Citizens of the European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA) can also reside in Sweden without registering with the Swedish Migration Agency, they can just apply for a personal identity number (PIN).
• A non-Swiss citizen who requires a staying for more than three months needs to have a residence permit.
• Those who are from outside of the EU/EEA/Switzerland and want to start a business in Sweden will have to apply for the residence permit before they come to Sweden.
• A temporary resident in Sweden can apply for a co-ordination number, which will replace the personal identity number, to enable him/her to apply for F tax registration.

THE PROCESS OF STARTING A NEW BUSINESS IN POLAND

• Starting a business is relatively easy as one can register at the appropriate town or community administrative office.
• The registration process is initiated by an application for entry into the register of trade, which usually costs about 100 PLN.
• The applicant would need to choose at least one category from the classification of activity.
• After receiving written confirmation of a trade registration, the applicant would need to apply for a REGON number from the National Statistics Agency. The REGON is used on several other forms so the applicant will be blocked without it. The applicant will then have to register at the ZUS (Social Insurance Institution) and apply for a tax number (NIP) at the tax office.
• It is possible to get a subsidy for setting up a business. This will require addressing the department of business development. European Union (EU) citizens will need to find out the available EU-programs because the programs and subsidies offered are prone to change.
• After going through this process, the business is ready for kickoff.
• Note that, in general, all documents have to be validated through signature and a company stamp.

LENGTH OF THE GOVERNMENT REGISTRATION AND ASSOCIATED CHALLENGES

• The process of starting a business in Poland can be long, taking about 37 days to complete the various procedures.
• In Poland, EU citizens or those within the European Economic Area (EEA) do not need a work permit to work, but people from outside these areas require a work permit as well as the appropriate visa.

LENGTH OF TIME IT TAKES TO SET UP BUSINESS BANKING ACCOUNTS AND ASSOCIATED CHALLENGES

• The process can take between one hour to one whole week.
• A bank account has to be opened in person in Poland, and it requires a personal visit to the bank branch by a representative of the company. It is not possible to open a bank account through an attorney in Poland in any Polish bank.
• Polish Banks can only examine foreign documents that are translated into the Polish language by a sworn translator.

IS POLAND GENERALLY CONSIDERED CHALLENGING FOR THOSE SETTING UP A BUSINESS?

• Poland offers a desirable market for foreign investments. The country offers many business opportunities and a suitable environment for opening a new business.
• While it is desirable for opening new businesses in many industries, it is also desirable for starting a small business.

English as a first or second language in Sweden or Poland

• From statistics of people who speak Swedish and English in Sweden, it was reported that Swedish is the first and primary language with 92.72% of people speaking it.
• While English has a 53.97% usage in Sweden.
• From statistics of people who speak Polish and English in Poland, it was reported that Polish is the primary language with 95.15% of people speaking it.
• While English has only a 19.85% usage in Poland.
• The population of Sweden is 10,061,733 million as of Friday, August 16, 2019. This statistic is based on the latest United Nations estimates.
• The population of Poland is 38,018,544 million as of Friday, August 16, 2019. These statistics is based on the latest United Nations estimates.

English used for businesses purposes in Poland and Sweden

• The use of spoken English is on the rise, especially with the younger generation in Poland.
• The country is a “strong, dynamic economy and a gateway to emerging markets of Eastern Europe,” and there are over “300 flights a week between the UK and Poland.”
• The CEE region which Poland is a member country “has widespread use of English as the business language.”
• The Swedish business culture can be different when compared to other countries, but the use of English is still prevalent in Swedish businesses. However, it is always advisable to learn as much Swedish when interacting with people within the country.
• Business meetings can still be held with the use English language due to the exemplary implementation of English in most of the country’s educational levels.

English in Polish and Swedish Media

• According to a survey, a first stage analysis of ten Swedish magazines examined had 430 advertisements, out of which only 73 contain English to some extent. This is only 17% of the total ads. From the 73 ads, nine messages were entirely written in English, and 64 other advertisements had the mixed-use of both English and Swedish.
• The ratio of English and Swedish in shows have stated that English has a relatively low frequency, and it is mostly employed in combination with Swedish.
• Furthermore, campaigns written exclusively in English are quite rare, as stated in the survey.
• In a study in Poland that analyzed 346 ads in twelve different Polish magazines, it found that 88% of the magazines had at least one English word, with a mean of 8.5 words per advertisement.
• Another study that analyzed 13 magazines and 235 product ads found that in 79% of the product ads, English was used alongside Polish.
• The survey have shown that English is highly utilized for advertisements in the Polish Media.

Research Strategy

Calculations

• The Population of Sweden that speaks English=10,061,733*53.97%=5,430,317 Swedish people Speak English.
• The Population of Poland that speaks English=38,018,544*19.85%=7,546,680 Polish people speak English.

FINTECH BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT IN SWEDEN

• The FinTech business is thriving as the high trust in this country’s financial system and its continuously stable financial market, have created "a unique environment in which consumers welcome new FinTech solutions".
• The Swedish market seems to be following trends in the global market, which has been growing over the last few years with the adoption of newer technologies and acceptance across newer markets, and 2017 was no different. The year saw the space garner $31 billion in funding globally, aggregating to a total global investment of $122 billion over the last three years.
• Sweden has been attracting nearly two-thirds of FinTech investments within the Nordic region.
• Generally, "The World Bank’s Doing Business 2018 report" ranks Sweden the #10 globally on the ease of conducting business. It also estimates the time to start a business within Sweden at seven days.
• In 2018, 188 FinTech companies were established in the Stockholm greater area.
• With a growing investor interest in the potential of technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Blockchain, and the Internet of Things (IoT), expected to impact the financial services sector, the FinTech space is dominating the tech sector globally. Sweden saw the space attract the largest portion within tech investments during 2017.
• The last quarter of 2017 saw BIMA (Insurtech) and iZettle (Payments / transactions) rank amongst the top 10 FinTech funding deals within Europe. The success of the Swedish FinTech space reflects in the fact that the country has consistently attracted nearly two-thirds of the Nordic FinTech investments consistently over the last two years.