The preeminent regional competition for companies in the technology sector, now in its 15th year, highlights both established and emerging technology companies in the region.
Today Deloitte opens registration for the 2014 edition of the Technology Fast 50, an annual ranking of the fastest-growing technology companies in Central Europe. This is the 15th consecutive year that Deloitte have run this programme in the countries of Central Europe (consisting of Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, and Slovenia).
The Central Europe Technology Fast 50 ranks the fastest-growing technology companies based on their revenue growth over a five-year period. For the 2014 ranking, revenues from 2009 to 2013 will be analysed. The competition is divided into three categories:
Fast 50
In order for a company to be considered eligible for the main Fast 50 ranking, it must meet following criteria:
· Annual revenues of at least €50,000 in each year between 2009 and 2013;
· Have its headquarters in a Central European country (Albania, Bulgaria, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, or Slovenia);
· Develop or manufacture propriety technologies or spend a significant amount of capital on research & development;
· Have an ownership structure that excludes majority-owned subsidiaries of strategic entities.
Winners are then selected based on ranking eligible registrants by revenue growth over a five-year period from 2009 to 2013.
Rising Stars
In the ‘Rising Stars’ category, Deloitte ranks ‘young’ companies that show great potential but are too new to meet the minimum of five years in operation criteria for the main category. Eligible companies must be in operation between three and five years and have to exceed revenues of €30,000 in each of the last three years (2011 – 2013). Otherwise the same criteria apply as for the main Fast 50 ranking.
Big 5
The ‘Big 5’ category ranks large fast-growing companies that have achieved extraordinary growth in the previous five years. To be eligible, companies must meet the same criteria as the main Fast 50 ranking with the exception of annual revenue in the final measured year (2013), which must exceed €25 million for this category.
More information about eligibility criteria is available at www.deloitte.com/fast50ce.
2013 results
Romanian Internet airline ticket retailer Vola.ro has placed first in Deloitte's 2013 Central Europe Technology Fast 50 for the third year in a row with a revenue growth rate of 5,729% over the past five years.
Other fast-growing companies included digital signal processing company Bitgear Wireless Design Services d.o.o. from Serbia, growing at a rate of 1,872% and the Polish software firm Softhis Sp. z o.o., who jumped from 29th place in 2012 to the second spot on the 2013 Fast 50 with a five-year growth rate of 1,573% which is more than three times more compared to 2012.
Last year's Rising Stars were topped by Romania software company INSOFT Development & Consulting SRL with a four-year revenue growth rate of 2,884%. In the Big 5 category, GOCLEVER Sp. z o.o., the Polish company operating in a field of consumer electronics was the fastest-growing company with 2012 revenues of over €25 million, and managed to remain in the Fast 50 main category in the eleventh position.
Technology Fast 50 winners in 2013 posted average revenue growth of 671%, a decrease on the 1026% average growth in 2012.
Online registration and eligibility criteria can be found on the regional Technology Fast 50 website at www.deloitte.com/fast50ce. Eligible registrants will be entered automatically into the Europe-wide competition known as the Deloitte EMEA Technology Fast 500.
Registration for this year’s ranking will close on 17 July 2014. The ranking will be announced in October 2014.
