For the past 20 years, the Nordics have been at the forefront of applying modern technologies in our everyday lives, introducing such giants like Spotify or Skype. To this day, they’re hosts to one of the most impressively flourishing tech ecosystems in Europe. That inspired us to take a closer look at what exactly they bring to the market in terms of high-tech solutions. These solutions include financial technology (fintech) that improves and automates using financial services, and SaaS (Software as a Service), which supports delivering online apps, making them easily accessible and manageable. To help you learn how the Nordic countries set the pace for fintech and SaaS development, we have compiled a list of the top 16 companies offering the most game-changing ideas and forward-thinking solutions. Read on to check them out!
1. Klarna
As the highest-valued private fintech company in Europe working with over 400,000 retailers, Klarna is redefining the shopping experience of millions of customers.
It offers payments for online storefronts and direct payments, but it is also known for a new approach toward post-purchase payments. As a “buy now, pay later” service provider, Klarna provides their customers with an effortless alternative to credit cards: credit on the purchase as part of the checkout process.
They now offer direct payments, pay after delivery, and installment options as well as a “pay now” service that allows you to pay immediately and in full to any online retailer that supports the company. A visionary in the world of online shopping, Klarna strives to make it even more intuitive and enjoyable.
2. Tink
Tink is one of Europe’s leading open banking companies, connecting over 3,400 banks and institutions, and reaching over 250 million customers. They support banks, fintechs, and startups that develop data-driven financial services.
Tink’s platform may be used for accessing aggregated financial data and building personal finance management tools, though it allows you to initiate payments as well. Their single API serves as a single access point to all financial data from across Europe.
More than 10 billion transactions per year make them one of the leading players in the modern banking market.
3. Pleo
Pleo is a Copenhagen-based startup that has already simplified the bookkeeping of over 20,000 companies. They offer smart digital or physical company credit cards that help employees buy everything they need for work—all while controlling the company’s expenses.
Pleo’s smartphone app and automated expense report tools make purchases easy and manageable. All of Pleo’s cards are prepaid business Mastercards with spending limits, and the digital ones are compatible with ApplePay and Google Pay.
4. Trustly
Trustly is an open banking payment method that combines all the features you’ve always wanted such services to have: it’s fast, secure, easy to use, and free of charge.
Used by customers, retailers, and banks alike, it allows you to make all payments directly from your bank account. You don’t need to sign up or enter your card details.
Trustly simplifies bank transfer refunds and installment payments, making them more intuitive. No expense limit makes it a perfect tool for carrying out high-value transactions.
Trustly provides their services to such clients as Facebook, ePay, or PayPal, effectively helping over half a billion consumers worldwide.
5. Funnel
The data platform created by Funnel, a Stockholm-based company, has all the right features to become an indispensable tool for marketers. Running a successful business today is largely based on data analysis, and Funnel helps you do just that by collecting advertising, analytics, and CRM data.
It puts all that data together and shows you its context, which in turn gives you a full insight into the effectiveness of your marketing strategy. By curating and harmonizing data in real time, Funnel helps you direct your marketing efforts where you want them to go.
Thanks to Funnel, data analysts and technical teams can finally focus on higher-value activities, leaving the basic data analysis to a convenient tool.
6. Lunar
Lunar is an independent, regulated, and licensed digital bank from Denmark. You can use it as a payment and investment tool and finance management platform without the need to leave your old bank.
Lunar’s aim is to “fundamentally change the way we perceive, talk about, and handle our money.” They do that by offering you the best Danish all-in-one banking app, fair prices, and transparent terms.
With Lunar, you don’t need to worry about visiting physical branches or contacting numerous advisors. Additionally, not unlike many other Nordic companies, Lunar is also environmentally friendly and ethical.
Google Play, Facebook, and Trustpilot are only some of the 500,000 Lunar users that value it for such a modern approach to banking.
7. Siteimprove
Siteimprove is a SaaS company who are an expert in creating cloud-based tools and services for website management and optimization. Their software products will help you automate the process of finding bugs, and as a result, make your website work more efficiently.
Siteimprove is a platform with a number of tools that you can use to analyze your website performance and optimize its digital accessibility. As a member of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), the leading group setting international web standards, Siteimprove knows how to assist you in improving web accessibility in accordance with the global Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.
8. Supermetrics
Supermetrics is recognized as one of the 100 best software products listed in G2, and for good reason. It takes any data you need from your marketing platforms such as Facebook or Google Ads and puts it into your analytics and storage platform.
It can be a data lake, a data warehouse, a BI tool, or a spreadsheet—anything that will let you look at clean data and make the right conclusions.
Supermetrics saves marketers the time normally spent dealing with CVS and copying/pasting. It simply takes over the job you’d normally do to help you make better data-informed decisions regarding your company, effortlessly and quickly.
9. Logpoint
Headquartered in Copenhagen, Logpoint is an international company behind an award-winning SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) software, and a successful operator in the areas of UEBA, SOAR, and SAP security.
Logpoint provides cybersecurity solutions with the use of advanced analytics supported by machine learning. Thanks to its security analytics engine built for real-time data analysis, you can quickly detect any data breaches or cyberattacks. You can then respond to these threats immediately and report them by means of a user-friendly interface.
Logpoint’s effectiveness and reputation as the creators of the most innovative and user-friendly cybersecurity platform is best evidenced by their cooperation with such companies as Airbus, Boeing, or Konica.
10. Attensi
Gamification in corporate training is an exciting alternative to traditional training. Your employees learn by getting immersed in authentic scenarios, experiencing realistic workplace processes, and interacting with other people.
This is exactly what Attensi offers you as a world leader in 3D gamified simulation training designed to make people “learn by doing.” Various applications of AI-based gamified simulations, from health safety training to onboarding staff, make Attensi’s platform a versatile tool for training, teaching, and engaging employees.
Attensi’s 3D simulations bring together advanced modeling and knowledge of human psychology. They have already been appreciated by companies in more than 100 countries using 50 different language versions.
11. Happeo
Happeo is a startup developing intranet software to connect employees with company tools and bring together all the information they need to do their job best. As the co-founder of the company Perttu Ojansu puts it, “[Happeo] lets teams and people create channels and pages around projects and mutual interests.”
With Happeo, you can expect to launch your intranet quicker than ever before—it takes from 6 to 8 weeks instead of an average of 1.2 years. It’s also easy to use and allows many different contributors to create content. You can also integrate it with Google Workspace and Microsoft 365.
Happeo also provides you with tools that help you understand your platform’s data, letting you see much more than just page visits and likes. With Happeo’s rich analytics, you can see engagement across the platform and what kind of content your users look for.
A handful of market-leading companies, such as Decathlon, Pinterest, or Doctolib have already recognized Happeo as an efficient tool to overcome information chaos.
12. Oneflow
Ever thought about turning your traditional contracts into digital ones, making them easy to create, sign, and store? Oneflow is a platform that will do just that and more.
Instead of attaching contracts to emails and saving them in different files, you can organize, categorize, and locate your digital documents in no time and with little effort.
Editing them is also simple—you can iterate on only one version of the contract and edit it in real time. With no need to resend it, you make sure that everything is in one place.
You can also create contracts using Oneflow templates and sign them at the same time. The company offers you a 14-day trial run to show you all the pros of such a modern contract automation process.
13. eloomi
For 8 years, eloomi has been offering solutions for HR organizations that help improve employee engagement and productivity. The company’s goal is to focus on an employee’s experience, without compromising automation and efficiency.
Thanks to removing more than 10 tools typically used for HR management, eloomi allows you to create, import, and manage content easily, measure success, and track the development of your employees.
Their platform lets you view statistics at a personal, departmental, or organizational level and helps you build your own online training content. Ensuring continuous development has made eloomi a top employee experience platform for mid-sized businesses.
14. Billogram
If you run a company with recurring payments and are handling a lot of invoices, Billogram will provide you with a functional billing service that is easy to use and improves your customers’ payment experience.
With Billogram, you can issue invoices in a transparent way and distribute them by means of different channels that are continuously added for customers’ convenience.
Digitalization tools offered by the company help you convert paper invoices into digital ones and improve your control over reminders and debt collection.
Billogram has a variety of quick and secure payment methods to meet customers’ needs as well as improve your company’s cash flow. Billogram has all you can expect from an up-to-date and user-friendly invoicing and payment tool.
15. Documaster
Documaster, a company based in Norway, understands well how important it is for businesses to manage their documentation effectively. They created a tool that will make you consider replacing shared and cloud folders.
Simple and scalable, Documaster is a secure platform that helps you organize important data and documents no matter how many there are. The platform was built in compliance with international standards for document storage and offers smart reminders that help you meet any data protection requirements.
This means you don’t need to worry about your archives’ safety. You can use the platform for contract management as well as the migration of documents from the systems you no longer use.
16. Qred
Qred, a B2B financing company, has already helped over 25,000 companies acquire financing and grow their business with short-term capital. Qred is a cutting-edge lending platform that gives you the possibility to apply for a loan without having to use traditional bank services.
The platform is based on a fully automated credit system that makes money borrowing and loan repayment easy and efficient. The system is also transparent—you pay a fixed amount each month and don’t need to worry about any hidden fees.
Such a flexible, entrepreneur-friendly alternative to filing bank applications could only be devised by entrepreneurs themselves. Being acutely familiar with the difficulties and challenges of running a business, they came up with an idea that addressed all those needs.
Final thoughts on the top 16 fintech and SaaS companies in the Nordics
Diverse solutions that make our lives easier and our work more organized show that the world of Nordic fintech and SaaS companies is an exceptionally fertile breeding ground for all innovations.
We hope that our list will inspire you to consider implementing some of those tools in your business—or even better, explore your own groundbreaking ideas.
At STX Next, we stay up-to-date on the latest industry developments and keep track of the most promising companies building cutting-edge solutions. Here are a few other examples of lists like this one:
- Paytech in 2021: Top 10+ UK Companies Changing the Payment Market
- Top 9 Noteworthy UK Companies Using Python
- 10+ Leading Companies Driving Innovation in Germany
We can also help you turn your product ideas into reality, whether it’s in fintech and SaaS or any other vertical. Just reach out to us and we’ll see what we can do for you!