Top Swedish Firms in the Technology Sector

Sweden is a country that is highly rated globally as a country with innovative nationals. Some of the best tech startups have emerged from the country, including now mature companies such as Ericsson and Spotify. These tech giants were built from a nation with a population of not more than 10 million citizens.

Skype was established in Sweden before it got purchased by Microsoft in 2011 for $9 billion, and iZettle had a total sale value of $2.3 billion when PayPal purchased it. Several tech enthusiasts opine that Swedish companies raise the standards of their tech firms to a certain level and then sell them off to a US tech giant.

In research conducted by the European Digital City Index (EDCI), the Swedish city of Stockholm has been ranked as the second best city in the world in appealing to the world’s top tech talents. Several tech firms from this city have been established and are doing well.

This article provides a list of the top European firms in the technology sector with some big names that’ll most likely surprise you.

Highest-Ranked Swedish Tech Firms

●    Klarna

Klarna is a firm based in the FinTech subsector, with a valuation of $46 billion. It was established in 2005, and its CEO, Sebastian Siemiatkowski, has a net worth of almost $4 billion. He has repeatedly reiterated his desire to make Klarna break into the rankings of the world’s top five fintech firms.

In recent years, Klarna has broken into the US market and is rapidly advancing in the country, with an average of 500,000 new users monthly. The popular American rapper, Snoop Dogg, is a brand ambassador and investor in Klarna.

Tech enthusiasts have debated whether Klarna will go the way of iZettle and Skype to sell to US investors. In the coming years, if the US market expands for Klarna, there’s a high probability the firm will get owned by a US tech giant.

●    Telenor IoT

Telenor Group is a leading telecommunications company across the Nordics and Asia with 172 million subscribers and annual sales of around NOK 110 billions (2021)

The subdivision Telenor IoT is  a global IoT provider, who provides IoT solutions to help firms enhance productivity. The firm has over 17 million connected devices across 190 countries for businesses to leverage.

●    Spotify

Spotify is a well-known global brand, especially for music lovers. It has a valuation exceeding $30 billion, created in 2006 by Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon.

Its music streaming application is the company’s popular product, providing legal audio streaming as a substitute for pirated music at the time. Nevertheless, Spotify has been embroiled in debates regarding its remuneration for music artists.

There is a lot of music on Spotify, with tracks numbering into the millions. The app can be used on mobile devices and computers. Spotify has at least 400 million active global users, with 180 million subscribers. The company took a small downturn in revenue last year when it netted a mere $5.5 million in the first three quarters of the year.

●    Ericsson

Ericsson is a Swedish firm based in the telecommunications sector with a market capitalization of $30 billion. It remains one of the top leaders in the telecommunications market because of its consistent embracing of new technology, allowing it to exist since 1876.

The firm was begun in Stockholm by Lars Ericsson and now employs more than 100,000 individuals around the globe.

●    Sinch

A computer software firm valued at $5 billion, Sinch is a revolutionary mobile messaging firm. The firm’s drive and vision are to ease up the process of mobile messaging since it remains the quickest way to reach millions of people.

The firm started up with a mere size of six employees in Stockholm and has advanced to become a multinational leader partnering with top firms in the world. Sinch’s cloud platform facilitates voice, text, and video messaging, handling at least 150 billion engagements annually.

●    Trustly

Trustly is a well-known fintech firm with a value of $750 million. Created in 2008, the firm employs more than 500 workers, with branches in various European, American, and Australian cities.

Trustly’s mission statement centers around diversity being the bedrock of innovation. This is displayed in the company’s workforce, with its employees comprising more than 50 different nationalities. Its CEO, Oscar Berglund, reiterated that Trusty aims to bypass card payments by allowing users to purchase from their bank accounts.

●    Kry

Kry is a telehealth firm created in 2015 as the health sector began adopting tech. Its valuation is over $600 million, with $60 million raised in its first funding round and $155 million in its second round to propel expansion across Europe.

The idea behind Kry’s establishment is to expedite services in the health sector. When patients feel symptoms, they visit the hospital, leading to increased waiting times. Kry’s service allows people to feed their symptoms into the app and then facilitate a call to a medical professional.

In the company’s seven years of existence, it has overseen over 1.5 million patient meetings.

●    Truecaller

Truecaller is a firm that raised $100 million and was established in 2009 by Alan Mamedi and Nami Zarringhalam. The app is highly popular with Android users since it reveals their true caller ID and helps block unwanted calls.

It ensures that as a smartphone user, you can determine who you want to link up with. One of the most crucial functions of Truecaller is correctly labelling numbers as spam so you can make better decisions when picking calls.

Conclusion

Sweden has been ranked a country with high-tech innovation despite its small size of 10 million people. Several tech firms have been started up in the country, which still exist or have been sold to US tech giants.

Sweden’s top five tech firms include Klarna, Hexagon, Spotify, Ericsson, and Sinch. Other well-known tech companies in the country include Truecaller, Kry, and Trustly.