Estonia has become a leader in technology and innovation, but how?
For Estonian-born CEO and co-founder of TransferWise, Taavet Hinrikus, the answer is in the past.
“We (Estonia) kind of started rebuilding the nation in 1991 after we became independent again. And we did things the smart way.”
Formerly a part of the Soviet Union, since gaining its independence Estonia has reinvented itself by modernizing and digitising many of its old analogue systems.
Estonia’s digitalisation is highlighted in it’s e-identity programme, and e-residency initiative.
Its e-identity programme has streamlined financial services and day-to-day tasks for the 98% of Estonians who have an ID card, and Estonia’s e-residency initiative offers foreigners the chance to become a digital resident of the country – all at the click of a few buttons.
Talking to CNBC in an episode of Life Hacks Live, Hinrikus credits Estonia’s digital growth to its reinvention.
“We did things from the beginning in the right way, setting up the right kind of structure in the economy. I think partially that’s thanks to the entrepreneurial tech success story, but also the government has some very smart people.”
“We’ve done many things digitally, we have the electronic government, and we have the EU residency programme, so all of these things are now starting to prove that it means there’s much less bureaucracy, things are running much more smoothly, it’s cheaper to administer and it’s more pleasant for consumers; the residents of Estonia.”
