Page 20 - Finland and the United States - Partners in Investment, Innovation and Trade
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Finland Has Much to Offer to American Investors
Finland has been ranked as the third
most attractive country for foreign direct investment (FDI) in the world, and not without reason.* Finland is well-known for its world-leading education system that produces a highly skilled workforce; its transparent, competitive and innovative business environment; its excellent logistics, advanced infrastructure and modern communications network; some of the highest R&D spending per capita in Europe; its booming startup scene; and having one of the most prosperous, stable, and safest societies in the
world. These qualities make Finland
an ideal investment destination and a test bed for new solutions, ideas, and technologies for American high-tech companies.
Finland is a great partner for innovation cooperation. Finland is a pioneer in digital technologies such as 5G, big data, digital health solutions, and cyber security. It also offers a safe and secure environment for foreign technology companies to develop and pilot new technologies and innovations. The Agreement Relating to Scientific and Technological Cooperation between Finland and the United States currently has three priority areas: Connected Health, Smart Cities, and Arctic Development.
Slush 2016 – Investor Day
Finland welcomes foreign investors.
The foreign companies registered in Finland enjoy the same benefits as Finnish companies, including access to government and EU investment incentives and to national technology programs,
and cooperation with the top Finnish universities. Our experience has shown that foreign companies enjoy high returns on their investments in Finland and locate here for the long term.
Finland is an R&D&I hotspot equipped with several high-tech ecosystems.
The American technology companies operating in Finland benefit from their collaboration with the Finnish high-tech
ecosystems in the form of innovations and technology spillovers, and through new business opportunities for foreign investors.
American companies have major operations in Finland. The value of FDI stock from the United States in Finland is USD 1.2 billion (2015, Bureau of Economic Analysis). There are more than 450 affiliates of American companies operating in Finland with a total turnover of USD 16.7 billion (2015, Statistics Finland). American companies employ 27,000 people in Finland.
More information: www.investinfinland.fi
*Source: European Commission (written by Copenhagen Economics), 2016, “Towards a Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Attractiveness Scoreboard”.
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PARTNERS IN INNOVATION
The National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Industry– University Cooperative Research Centers Program recently started collaboration in Finland: the work at Tampere University of Technology focuses on big data research, and at the University of Oulu, on cyber security. The centers conduct collaborative research between industry and academic researchers together with their U.S. counterparts, facilitated by DIMECC, a Finnish ecosystem in digital services and engineering.
Photo: Sami Heiskanen / Slush 2016


































































































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