SWEDELINK Newsletter Summer 2019-2020

The answer could be putting on a good show, as that is what the EPA Asia did during their industry event on 10 October which SACC was invited to, but more important is their keen interest for Swedish Fintech.

Snoop Dog recently became one of the minority shareholders in Klarna the Swedish Fintech which was founded in 2005 and has gone to become the highest valued Fintech in Europe with a value at $5.5 Billion! Commonwealth Bank has also recently invested in Klarna, which once and for all have put Swedish Fintech on the map of Australia.

If we take a closer look at Klarna and also two other Unicorns from Sweden, Bambora which was bought by Ingenico for $1.5 Billion and iZettle bought by PayPal for $2.2 Billion a pattern emerges – Sweden doesn’t just offer outstanding Fintech but we do excel in the niche of Paytech (payments technology). Which is excellent news at this a market with double-digit growth.

This is what the Emerging Payments Associoan Asia had noticed and that in the combination with Sweden leading the way to become the first cashless nation in the world (two things that are closely linked) made the decision to choose “Sweden the Cashless Society” as the destination for the study tour 2019 easy.

The event on the 10 October was not just a summary of the findings the association did during their three-day-long excursion to Sweden, it was also an opportunity to apply the key learning to Asia Pacific settings. This was done during two panels settings where some of Australia’s most profiled payment leaders discussed how “Swish” came to be so successful and comparing that to the Australian equivalent Osko. Also,  what “BankID” has meant for Sweden’s uptake of digital payments and how Australia is lacking a digital identity scheme. Robert Book (CGI One) who is an well-known expert on Swish and BankID, participated to explain the journey of how BankID has an uptake of 84% in Sweden and how Swish has grown to in 2018 initiate 397 million payments.

It was also very interesting to hear from the CEO of Minna Technology (Joakim Sjöblom) who shared the experience from Open Banking (Open banking refers to the concept of banks opening up access for their data to third parties, most commonly via open application programming interfaces (APIs))  in Europe and especially two main points he said:

1. Open Banking has created a need for Banks to collaborate which has positive impacts for their consumers; and
2. Consumers are always willing to share their data if there is a value attached to doing so and most common is the value of convenience or time savings.

Both Joakim and Robert personified what Swedish Fintech is about and why we will see more of this export in the future – they where razor-sharp in the delivery of their message but still very down to earth and approachable, no fluffing around it was said “as it is” and that is why Swedish Paytech is a force to count on now and in the future!

For more information please contact SACC member Camilla Bullock 

On 16 October, Australia’s mining capital was honoured with a visit by Professor Göran Roos. A second opportunity to hear Prof Roos, after 2018’s successful Innovation in Mining event, also hosted by the Swedish Australian Chamber of Commerce in Western Australia.

On this occasion, we learnt of the regularity of global paradigm shifts; a transition of fundamental global patterns that of course does not happen overnight. The fifth of which, we are currently experiencing in the modern world. The changes we are looking at entail the reduction of our environmental footprint, increase of digital presence in all areas of life, and the use of as little energy as possible.

Each paradigm comes with its dependencies (think coal and fossil fuels). What will this transition mean for Earth’s resources? All paradigm shifts have historically come with consequences, and it’s a necessary point to make that this one will be no different.

In moving towards a greener world, we will become more dependent on metals, including rare earth metals such as dysprosium and neodymium (two rare earth metals that play a central role in the production of wind turbines for example). A dependency as such is entirely new for the world.

Knowing all this, how can we adjust the mining industry to facilitate for future demand?

First, there is the requirement of dialogue between the private and public sectors. There is an immediate need for directionality – governments are essentially market makers that must, with careful deliberation, manage restrictions and guidelines for where we are heading in accordance with the appropriate scientists.

SACC WA would like to thank Prof Roos for the insightful presentation. We would also like to thank SCANIA and SSAB, who very generously sponsored the event, as well as Ernst & Young for hosting us.

Needless to say, we look forward to Prof Roos’ next visit.

SACC Perth WA

The two organisations the Swedish Australian Chamber of Commerce (SACC) and the Australian Business Council of Sweden (ABCS) are proud to now announce a cooperation to actively promote one another and have reciprocal rights to visit each other’s events at member prices.

The Australian Business Council of Sweden promotes networks and business development for professionals in Sweden with affiliations to Australia. Regular events are run throughout the year in Sweden to bring together professionals and benefit the community.

Please sign up for the ABCS mailing list here https://www.australianbusiness.se/join to receive news and updates about upcoming events. Be sure to also forward this on to any Swedes you know who have returned home – they would be a welcome part of the ABCS community in Sweden!

Lastly, if you are around in Stockholm on October 24 then please lock in the date for the ABCS annual Flagship event, very kindly hosted this year by Grant Thornton.

Click here for the ABCS website to find out more – www.australianbusiness.se

The #SACCSydney event on 24 Sept with #IKEA leading the way in the Circular Economy was a great success. The evening started with a welcome and introduction of the newly appointed Ambassador of Sweden HE Henrik Cederin then IKEA’s CEO and CSO, Jan Gardberg presented their groundbreaking, world-wide sustainability strategy, transforming the way of working from linear to circular. Jan and IKEA’s Sustainability team with Melissa Miller, Kate Ringvall, Bhumika Selot and IKEA Tempe Sales Manager, David Hawthorn presented examples of how IKEA through their business (with 160,000 co-workers, 400 communities, 140 million IKEA Family members, 1 billion store and centre visitors and 2 billion IKEA.com visitors) has a unique opportunity to lead the way by being a good example for positive change towards a circular economy. Thank you to everyone attending and to all at IKEA involved in organising and supporting this event.

See this link for more information on the presentation.

17 Sept #SACCPerth and #IKEA teamed up on Circular Economy and more specifically – how IKEA is leading the way in this space. Rather than thinking product to waste, IKEA thinks products to resources. Specifically for us in Perth, IKEA is soon to introduce a furniture buy back service, more plant based food options and already have thousands of sustainable products in the range. Thanks IKEA for being great hosts and thanks all guests for well-informed and inspiring comments and questions. IKEA People & Planet