Although Silicon Valley remains a golden standard for startup companies, new technology hubs around the world have emerged to support further developments. With almost 140,000 new startup businesses launched every day (according to the last year’s World Startup Report), it is clear that Silicon Valley cannot be the home for them all.
Nor it should be. There are a variety of countries that offer better expansion opportunities, lower corporate tax rates, and better government incentives. The two examples that are particularly interesting are Singapore and Estonia, where a greater number of startup companies is founded with every passing year.
Singapore calling
In relation to Singapore, Catapult Ventures CEO Vinod Nair explains for ZDNet that this country is somewhat of a heaven on earth for the rising startups for various reasons. Firstly, incubators are plentiful, meaning that entrepreneurs can easily find the necessary help for their most critical processes.
Secondly, the policies regarding company establishment and getting loans from the government are simpler than in most other countries, which leaves more space for entrepreneurs to focus on mission-critical activities. There are even companies that will guide the entrepreneurs through the whole process, as is the case with Rikvin that graphically represents steps needed to set up a company in Singapore and emphasizes the most complex ones.
Estonia’s representative examples
When it comes to Europe, however, Estonia appears to be one of the most interesting areas for a startup life. This is mostly due to the fact that the country has one of the most liberal tax regimes in the world, which makes company incorporation both cheap and easy. With government’s incentives for new technology companies and over 150 of those already based in Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, this truly sounds as a place to create a successful business.
After all, Skype was initially founded in Estonia, where it still employs over 400 IT specialists. Thus, as Antti Vilpponen, CEO of Arctic Startup once pointed out:
“Estonia has three things in its favor: political leadership, the success of Skype, and its culture.”
These insights definitely shed a new light on the startup development options. It’d be interesting to monitor the future growth of these regions, which is certainly going to be a turbulent one.
Image credit: HenryLeongHimWoh