Yerevan named among world's 25 up-and-coming startup cities

Yerevan named among world's 25 up-and-coming startup cities

PanARMENIAN.Net - The Armenian capital of Yerevan has been named one of 25 up-and-coming startup cities projected to grow into the hubs of the future, says a report by Valuer, a Danish matchmaking tool for startups and corporations.

Moreover, Yerevan is placed the 6th on the list, with advantages including online business registration, low crime rate, low overhead cost. Corruption and limited access to funding, meanwhile, are among the disadvantages cited by the platform.

"Most people would probably not expect Yerevan to appear so high on this list, but the city and the country overall are making leaps in order to promote economic growth. Business leaders are beginning to recognize Armenia as a hotspot for IT development and innovation, and as a consequence, the country has a rapidly growing startup scene," the source says.

"Self-described as the “Silicon Mountains”, the number of software startups quadrupled between 2015 and 2017 to reach approximately 280. The government is legislating to facilitate further growth of this market, offering a five-year tax break for startups and creating two free economic zones in Yerevan in which tech startups can operate without paying VAT, property tax, income tax, or export customs duty.

"These reforms have seen the tech industry grow by 20% annually, exploding compared to Armenia’s overall economic growth (hovering at 2%). The large US tech corporations in Armenia are also funding educational programs, further developing Yerevan’s talent pool. With the industry accounting for 15% of Armenia’s exports, the startup scene here is only expected to continue to grow."

Here is a list of all the cities that made it to the top 25:

25. Boulder, Colorado

24. Dallas, Texas

23. Bratislava, Slovakia

22. Mumbai, India

21. San Diego, California

20. Mexico City, Mexico

19. Edinburgh, Scotland

18. Miami, Florida

17. Krakow, Poland

16. Moscow, Russia

15. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

14. Turin, Italy

13. Hamburg, Germany

12. Chicago, Illinois

11. Antwerp, Belgium

10. Cardiff, Wales

9. Salt Lake City, Utah

8. Zagreb, Croatia

7. Rotterdam, the Netherlands

6. Yerevan, Armenia

5. Riga, Latvia

4. Portland, Oregon

3. Ljubljana, Slovenia

2. Tallinn, Estonia

1. Wroclaw, Poland

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