The largest it company in Belarus. Registration of an IT company in Belarus

At the end of last week, Jan Koles, the head of the IT company Be-Mobile, which belongs to the largest operator in Belgium, flew to Belarus. cellular Proximus. The company was looking for a contractor for the development of its products for a long time and after studying several countries chose the Belarusian CactusSoft. The Onliner.by correspondent met with the head of Be-Mobile and his colleague Ines Mercart and found out what the Belgians think about the Belarusian IT industry.

Developer cost is not the main factor

- So you were looking for developers in seven countries, right?

Yes, that's right. Be-Mobile operates throughout Europe as well as the US and Latin America- the business is growing a lot, and we needed developers. Among the Belgian companies, we did not find highly qualified people in a short time, so we started looking outside the country.

Three options were considered. The first is the south of Europe. This is Portugal, Spain, because there were economic crises. The second is Eastern Europe: Hungary, Bulgaria, Poland and Belarus. And the third option is Brazil, since we have our own office there, and the country is also in crisis, just like in the south of Europe. As a result, we settled on Belarus. The country came up to our criteria, and it's not just the price. I want to emphasize that the cost of developers is not the main factor for us. What matters is the quality of education, discipline and reliability of people, feedback from other companies we work with, as well as the convenience of work - language, time zone.

- Still, it's hard to believe in some kind of uniqueness of Belarusian developers ...

In terms of education, Belarus is really at a very high level. We also believe that you have a “high-tech spirit”, which is not so strongly manifested, for example, in Poland. Yes, they also have many IT companies, but this feeling is not there.

Plus, you have quite a few big-name grocery companies like MSQRD. We felt that Belarus has a good combination of education and cultural affinity. And don't forget about the influence of the state: it has done an amazing job and has been able to stimulate IT companies.

Differences between Indians, Belarusians and Belgians

- But what about the developers from India and China?

A couple of years before we chose Belarus, we considered the possibility of working with India, Pakistan, China. But, to be honest, everything is completely different there. Based on our experience and the stories of colleagues, the cultural differences are too big - this is the first thing. Secondly, there is a strong difference in communication, a gap in time. Thirdly, direct contact with the team is important, understanding that you are working on one thing. It's hard to explain, but it's different with Hindus and Chinese.

- How exactly do differences in work manifest themselves?

You have to literally keep on with them [the Asian developers] to make sure they are doing it right. Do not give feedback until you decide to check the result yourself. Therefore, the result may be completely different from the original assignment. They never ask: "Am I doing everything right?" They just do and don't think. This is the main difference between Indians and Belarusians. True, I will correct that I only work with CactusSoft, so I don’t know how things are with other companies. Belarusians also think while developing, trying to find the best solution.

Now let's talk about the difference between Belgians and Belarusians. In Belgium, people are more involved in product development, they are more entrepreneurial, proactive. If they think that it should be different, they will tell you about it right away.

Here I am the boss in my company, but people can tell me absolutely everything, and I will not take it badly - on the contrary, I urge them to express their opinions. Otherwise, the employees will become frustrated. And in Belarusian companies there is a boss. You, it seems to me, have more hierarchy and procedures. Although we also have this: for example, in government agencies and banks, everyone listens to the boss - after all, he must be right. Here the size of the company is more important than any cultural aspects. Therefore, we prefer to work with medium-sized companies.

Why Belgium won't have a Hi-Tech Park

- Now we have begun to pay more attention to grocery rather than outsourcing companies. How is it doing in Belgium?

The situation is a bit similar, but what you said started earlier in Belgium. There is an abundance of venture funds, private capital - they invest in companies that develop products, web services, SaaS solutions.

Then we have huge outsourcing companies that do not develop their products, but provide services for traditional businesses - banks, telecom operators, government organizations that need to digitize their processes. And the salaries of such developers are really very high. Here I see great potential for Belarus: I think you need to do more projects for traditional businesses.

- Is there anything similar to the Hi-Tech Park in Belgium?

We have a couple of things that the Hi-Tech Park gives to your companies: grants, subsidies for innovative companies. But this is incomparable with the capabilities of the HTP. For example, Be-Mobile is a tech company and we pay 34 percent in taxes. Imagine: if an employee receives a thousand, then the company will have to pay almost three thousand, including taxes and social contributions.

It seems to me that the transfer of the businesses of Russian and Ukrainian IT companies to Belarus is only a matter of time.

- Will the appearance of an analogue of HTP in Belgium harm your economy?

In Belgium there are many things and mechanisms that are not in Belarus: for example, a very expensive social insurance system, companies and citizens pay high taxes. I don’t think that our government now has the opportunity to launch the Hi-Tech Park with the same conditions as yours. It will be too expensive. On the one hand, then more companies would appear immediately, but on the other, these missing taxes would have to be collected from someone else.

Impressions about Belarus

- When did you first come to Belarus?

Two years ago, when they were looking for a suitable company for us. It turned out to be very easy to find contact with potential partners, but after meeting with CactusSoft they opted for her. Since then I have been here for what seems to be the tenth time.

- What did you know about Belarus before your first visit here?

I knew about Belarus from a company from my sphere - called Gurtam. We have already worked with her for about 4-5 years. What we do: we read information based on the GPS position of a moving vehicle, and we have a contract with Gurtam - the company works in a similar area.

Having just got acquainted with Gurtam, I was already impressed by the professionalism and ambition of your companies.

Our classic request for foreigners: share your general impressions of Belarus. Without touching business.

For us, Belarus was really an unknown country, and this is very annoying. It is not far away: just 2.5 hours by plane, both from Brussels to Paris or Amsterdam. The mentality is somewhat similar to the Belgian one: we are also a small country, and therefore we have to be open - otherwise we cannot build a business. The population of the countries is also comparable - there are about 11 million people in Belgium. You, like us, are open to foreigners, ready to learn, and you know very well English language compared to other Europeans. Seriously, even the French who live next door to the British speak much less English than Belarusians.

Today, residents of the Hi-Tech Park who are developing software products and providing IT services to clients from more than 67 countries around the world, are 751 companies.

If you are interested in finding a partner or an IT service provider, we suggest using the database of HTP resident companies.

Search by HTP resident companies

Softmax telemetry systems

Softmax Telemetry Systems is a domestic software developer. The company was founded in 2012, specializes in the development of software products, the provision of implementation services automated systems in such spheres as gas distribution, main transportation of gas, hydrocarbons and their products, telecommunications. The work uses Java, C #, Objective-C, Swift, PHP, JavaScript, HTML, CSS, T-SQL, 1C, etc. More than 20 domestic and foreign enterprises cooperate with the company.

* INSTINCTOOLS

Development of software and web applications to order on the offshore model.

We provide teams of specialists for the entire cycle of work related to software development: analytics, consulting, design, development, testing, documentation, as well as setting up business processes for managing IT projects.

* instinctools is:

· Stable teams, the possibility of direct interaction with specialists.

· Absolute transparency in work and daily reporting.

· Full adaptation and involvement in processes.

· A wide range of specialists from analytics to operations.

· Favorable prices.

· We are open to visits to our offices.

· Information Technology

Marketing and sales

Healthcare

· Education

Cryptocurrency

Technologies:

Java Frameworks

IOS / Android / Windows Mobile

Front-End / UI Platforms

Blockchain Development

Go Programming language

They want a lot from us - we do more!

1C-Bitrix

The company has been operating in Belarus since 2013. The company has 7 employees, the main task is to publish Bitrix24 software, a cloud service and a boxed version, 1C-Bitrix: Site Management and 1C-Bitrix: Mobile application, written in php, including their localization and marketing promotion. The products have a Declaration of Conformity. The company's products are actively used by more than 8,000 customers throughout Belarus, including large retail chains, online stores, banks, service enterprises, manufacturing companies, and car dealers.

ATON Engineering

ATON Engineering is a domestic engineering and implementation organization. The company was founded in 2008, specializes in the adaptation and revision of software products for computer-aided design, provision of services for the implementation of CAD / CAM / CAE software products in industry, engineering development. Currently, the staff includes 6 employees in Minsk. More than 50 domestic and foreign enterprises cooperate with the company.

IBA IT PARK

IBA IT Park- the leading Belarusian development center of the international holding IBA Group, which unites over 2,600 professionals from more than 20 enterprises in 11 countries of the world with its head office in Prague (Czech Republic).

IBA IT Park (until August 2013, FE "IT Park") was established in 2006 to expand the export opportunities of the IBA Group and represent the interests of the holding in the HTP, of which IBA IT Park has been a resident since 2007.

IBA IT Park employs about 1600 specialists with extensive expertise in software development and maintenance on IBM, SAP, Oracle, Microsoft, Check Point, PTC platforms and experience in international projects.

Main directions of activity:

• Custom software development on Java / Web platform
• Development of corporate portals
• Localization, integration and vertical solutions based on SAP ERP, SAP HANA, SAP S / 4HANA
• Development of analytical systems, transaction processing systems and Big Data based on SAP HANA, SAP S / 4HANA
• Migration and maintenance of business applications
• Software design and development for IBM Mainframe and FujitsuMainframe platforms, client-server architecture software for various platforms
• Solutions for enterprise asset management (EAM), retail banking, product lifecycle (CAD / CAM / CAE and PDM / PLM), IT infrastructure (OSS / BSS), IT services (ITSM / ITIL), regulatory information ( MDM / MDG), service technical support users of IT infrastructure (ServiceDesk), maintenance and repair (MRO), transport and transport logistics
• Systems electronic document management, business process management and corporate content (Workflow / BPM / ECM), electronic document archives
• Creation of data warehouses, business intelligence and budgeting systems (DWH / ETL / BI / CPM)
• Development of mobile applications
• IBAGroup data center services: hosting information resources, backup, archiving and data recovery.

Compliance of the QMS according to the standards STB ISO 9001 and DIN EN ISO 9001, information security- STB ISO / IEC 27001, software development and maintenance processes - maturity level 4 of the SEI CMMI® model.

IBA IT Park is a laureate of the Government of the Republic of Belarus Prize for Achievements in the Field of Quality and a special award in the category "Social Responsibility" for "conducting socially responsible business and creating conditions that ensure social protection of all stakeholders: personnel, consumers, partners, society".

IBA Group holds leading positions in prestigious international competitions and ratings: TheGlobalOutsourcing 100 by the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals (IAOP), Software 500, one of the largest publications in the global IT industry, SoftwareMagazine, GlobalServices 100 by GlobalServices, European IT & Software Excellence Awards of the European edition of IT Europa, GSA European Awards by the Global Sourcing Association, CEE Shared Services and Outsourcing Awards by CEE BusinessMedia.

ITECHART GROUP

iTechArt Group- a leading company engaged in the development of software and consulting, specializing in web and mobile programming. We offer our clients a traditional IT outsourcing model, coupled with project-oriented services, which enables our clients to create a dedicated team in one of our development centers in Eastern Europe and coordinate her work.

It so happened that I moved to live and work from Moscow to Minsk. I often saw similar materials about similar moves to some exotic for me or very distant countries, but I want to share my experience of emigration "to neighbors".

It is important that I will write specifically about Minsk, and not about the whole of Belarus. What is written below is just my vision of the situation, perhaps somewhere I did not see everything.

If you have any questions, write in a personal or in the comments to the post.

IT and job search

There are about 10-15 strong IT companies in Minsk with the Moscow salary level. All of them are presented on our classic job search sites. Basically here, of course, is something related to the web and outsourcers. They often and successfully relocate employees to Minsk.

If you come from Moscow, no one looks at you as a "specialist from Moscow", you will be on the same level as the rest. But! There is a clear shortage of qualified employees - this is a fact.

Still very important fact: the domestic market of Belarus is negligible in comparison with the domestic market of Russia. This means that they are looking for a client here "over the hill" and are not spoiled for light budgets here. The level of culture of production and products here is also high and modern. And the level of customer service, the level of ability to work at the offer stage, etc., is higher than in Russia (apparently due to the search for clients in Europe).

Accordingly, English is almost the norm for local IT workers, keep that in mind.

In my case, I first found, and only then moved. I think this is the best option.

Legal side

Everything is very simple here, and it boils down to several sequential steps.

1. You must rent any rental property. Almost everyone who rent out an apartment themselves does not mind doing it legally. You agree on the price, then go to the local (each district of the city has its own) housing department, take a standard contract form, sign it on both sides. There were no queues, the employee was aware of all the nuances, he told everything in detail.

A common practice is to write in the contract a lower rental price than it is. This is done for the sake of reducing the owner's income tax, it is worth discussing such things in advance. Who, in fact, will pay this tax?

2. Having received a rental agreement in your hands, you can officially find a job. In short, at this stage the employer signs an employment contract with you.

3. Next, you need to take a cardboard folder with the title “Case”, a couple of photographs, a copy of the rental agreement, your passport and employment contract and go to the local FMS office. Here I did not notice any queues either. Everything went quickly, but I had to pay a fee of about $ 40.

4. After about 10 days, all in the same FMS, I received a small green piece of paper confirming my registration. It is given for a certain period, in my case - a year. I took a copy of this registration to work.
No one on the street ever asked for documents or registration. In general, there are significantly fewer police officers here.
The only bonus of this registration was the opportunity to buy a “normal” local tariff of a mobile operator, instead of a “guest” tariff, which is not very profitable.

Why Minsk?

Before moving here, I visited this city several times and I liked it. I understood perfectly well that I had not seen all the "inside" and so on, so in many ways it was a gamble, but in the end I am very glad that I did it. I wanted a quieter, cleaner, well-groomed city - and I got it. In addition, it is a great opportunity to grow as a specialist in a new place of work.

On the other hand, I didn’t want to go far, yet my relatives and friends are an important part of my life. And here Minsk looks like a very tempting idea. What is needed, almost the same mentality, but a little more Europe.

It is difficult to explain, on the one hand, everything here is very similar to my house, as if you went to a neighboring city in Russia, on the other hand, “the devil is in the details”.

People

The average Minsk resident is a little more hardworking, a little less aggressive, a little more calm compared to the same average Muscovite. Add a little more modesty here (haven't seen the "golden boomers" and tinted "car boys with bass" yet). Plus, it's worth adding that the locals are a little more quiet. There is something in them from the Baltic peoples in the good sense of the word.

In general, there is one word in the Belarusian language, the translation of which I cannot literally say, and so far no one has been able to do it for me. This word is "pamyarkony". It sounds, of course, hackneyed, but the meaning of the word must be felt. And if you feel the meaning, it means that you have already at least a little understood the peculiarities of Belarus.

People here lead a more measured and less hasty life. When I walk down the street, my speed is 15-20 percent higher than the rest (now it is already passing). I can't say that I see more smiles, but I definitely see less gloom in their faces.

Language

The Belarusian language is dying out - this is, unfortunately, a fact. Almost everyone I asked say that this has been going on for a long time and has turned into just a natural process. The native language is known in villages and in academia. Here is such a gap turned out.

You won't have any problems if you don't know the language, although many names are written in Belarusian. If you take a word without context, it is sometimes difficult to translate, but the meaning is always clear in the context. I have never used a translator yet. Many Belarusians asked me if their language seemed ridiculous to them - for some reason I don't think so. Language, like a language, but still more like Ukrainian or Polish, it seems to me.

Prices

If you want to go to Minsk because of its cheapness, then it's too late. Prices for food, goods, and many services (with the exception of) are not much lower than in Moscow. However, I would like to add that there is one difference with regard to food. Local food is very tasty here. For example, all sorts of "Danones" are in the store and nervously smoke.

Although this is no longer about prices, I wanted to write about it. Trams, trolleybuses, computers at customs officers and much more are all locally made. MAZ works, farmers come to the market.

At first there was a complete removal of the brain with prices. Now I'm getting used to it. In its simplest form, divide by 10,000 to get the price in US dollars. By the way, it is very cool if your salary is pegged to the dollar exchange rate in Belarus. Inflation is still palpable here. For example, I save and store money not in local currency.

Lodging

Renting an apartment in Minsk is not a problem now. Interesting offers constantly appear and leave very quickly. What is the reason for such a boom - I do not know. A good renovated one-room apartment, in the center, next to the metro station, costs $ 500- $ 600. It is generally considered not cheap. You can find it for $ 200- $ 300, but with a "Soviet" renovation and not in the center. They prefer to receive rent in dollars. I recommend looking for housing with an agent, he will take half the cost of a month. If you start looking for yourself, you will get tired of driving through offers. Oh, yes, you can always bargain, this is normal here.

But the "communal" pleases. The entire communal apartment for a one-room apartment, together with a telephone, costs about $ 35. Streets and courtyards are clean, garbage is taken out, in general, I have not yet encountered any problems here. I pay for the whole communal apartment via the Internet. Here it is convenient and simple with this.

Prices for "buy" housing are comparable to those in the Moscow region. Why and who is buying - I do not know. Mortgages are not given in Belarus now.

Public transport

According to my calculations, it is at least twice cheaper. Runs on schedule, ride comfortably. Although the intervals between trains in the metro at first surprised me and was not customary, as well as the depth of the stations (it seems that I just went down into the underground passage) - hence, by the way, a different culture of behavior on the escalator.

About the metro. Probably, it rarely happens that during rush hours there is no free space. And the point is not that I occupy him, but that they sometimes still remain.

Here are just standard Google Maps and Yandex Maps do not want to build routes for public transport in this city.
I often take a taxi, it is cheap and very convenient to call. I have never waited more than 5-10 minutes anywhere in the city.

Car traffic

There are much fewer cars. What local drivers consider to be a traffic jam is considered to be slow traffic in our country. Apparently from here and another driving culture - less aggressive. No, it's true, the "Muscovites" are immediately visible. There are almost no VAZs here, it turns out to be more profitable to buy a used foreign car. And drivers let people pass at crossings even in the very center. The pedestrian really has the upper hand here. There are no problems with parking in the courtyards, but this is not because of the thoughtfulness of the courtyards, but because of the number of cars.

I almost never met such a thing as staking out a place in the yard, only next to institutions.

Bicycles

It seems to me that there are much more cyclists here than in Moscow. On the one hand, it is more convenient to move around the city - traffic is easier, on the other hand, the eternal problem of curbs.

By the way, a very steep, modern bike path runs through the whole of Minsk from north-west to south-east. About 30 km long along the Svisloch River. Just for the sake of this cycle path, you can already buy a bicycle.

Photos from the bike path

In just 20 minutes you will see a forest, a swamp, and grazing horses. At first, I could not even believe that there was a big city somewhere just a couple of kilometers away from me. Very picturesque places.

By the way, since there are slightly different laws here and there really is consumer protection, after buying a bicycle, the first MOT for a bicycle is free.

But in this photo we are handing over for the "bicycle license", which we received at one of the events.

And also, today, 20 minutes away by bike from the center, in some fields I saw live deer, peacefully rushing about their business. The place where this happened can be found by link.

Services

There is less competition among local entrepreneurs than in Moscow. This greatly affects the level of service. No, they won't get rude, but no one will beg you no matter what. Everything takes longer (the slowest McDolds in the world, it seems to me, is in Minsk).

Probably comparable to provincial cities in Russia. Companies that start working on the service are immediately noticeable.
A typical story. I call the taxi, I say I'm standing by shopping center so-and-so, she asks for an address, I name it. And I must say that this shopping center is a well-known point in Minsk. The girl in a very displeased voice says that this shopping center has a different address.

Yes, you are right, maybe I was wrong.
- First, figure out where you are, then call - and hangs up.

I smiled and called another taxi.

Internet

4G is not available. 3G works worse than in Moscow, it is very noticeable by the way the phone's battery runs out. The coverage area itself is not bad. You can check email, social networks - you can almost anywhere.

But home internet is a disaster. It is almost twice as expensive here, not everywhere there is a dedicated line, ADSL is very popular. I think this is the same temporarily. Still, there is some progress in this direction. Now for a 10-ku (which is systematically decreasing or falling) I pay about $ 25.

If you are renting an apartment, immediately find out about this. Some houses don't even have ADSL and won't. Moreover, this is not related to the year of construction.

Greenery

Minsk is green and clean. The heat is better tolerated here than in Moscow. And they clean not only the central streets, but even the fields outside the city. Now I am very much afraid that the city will start growing according to the principle of Moscow - everything should be condensed and cut down. There are wide streets, a lot of space. There is where to swim, even within the city, with showers, buoys and more.

The parks here are really islands of nature.

Until I figured out whether people actually litter less, or clean more often, or maybe both.

Conclusion. Is it worth it or not?

It is clear that all this is individual and everyone must answer this question himself. But Minsk is definitely a great modern city where you can live comfortably and earn money. This is not a radical change in culture, it is just an opportunity to live in a more pleasant place. There will always be more money, more opportunities and more speed in Moscow. Minsk is not suitable for everyone - but I think this is good.

P.S. A few facts noticed

• Very few redheads
• Few men wear beards
• Beggars and homeless people are not visible
• Less urban lunatics and freaks
• 4 hours by train to Vilnius
• There are significantly fewer non-working holidays here.

Over the past few years, the Belarusian artificial intelligence market has grown several times. What role do the knowledge-intensive communities of Belarus play in the development of artificial intelligence, and why do other countries willingly cooperate with its developers and buy projects?

In short, the recipe for success lies in serious government support, and in return, the industry becomes an important column in the country's economy. In 2005, the High-Tech Park (HTP) was founded in Belarus, which has since attracted about 400 residents involved in artificial intelligence and deep learning. For example, there are projects from the USA (including Silicon Valley), China, Cyprus, Norway, Israel, Great Britain, Austria, the Netherlands, France, Russia.

Legislative and educational initiatives have become the basis for this success. For example, the decree of the President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko "On the development of the digital economy", signed at the end of 2017, served as a "green light" for the development of blockchain technologies. Elements of British law were introduced and the activities of HTP residents were expanded: they can now range from creating self-driving cars to supporting education from IT companies.

The effect of the 2017 decree became noticeable immediately: in the first half of 2018, the Park's exports grew by a record 40%, excluding new companies. This is even more than in 2017, when, for the first time in history, exports surpassed the $ 1 billion bar and grew by 25%.

In 2018, Bulba Ventures, a foundation specializing in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, was opened in Belarus. It is noteworthy that one of its co-founders, Yuri Melnichek, previously invested in the AIMatter startup, which was acquired by Google in 2017. This year, the fund has invested in three projects: Friendly Data, Rocket Body and Wannaby. At the same time, the retail startup Wannaby raised a noticeable amount of $ 2 million (apart from Bulba Ventures, Haxus, a company specializing in computer vision and augmented reality for shopping, also took part in the round). A similar amount was raised by the parental control application Nicola by FaceMetrics from the Belarusian fund VP Capital and the Russian Larnabel Ventures.

Computer vision is becoming a worldwide trend in general. According to Wannaby co-founder Aleksey Melnichk, Google's purchase of the startup AIMatter and Facebook's purchase of MSQRD symbolize the “heyday” of Belarusian AI technologies. After that, it became obvious that Belarusian teams and artificial intelligence products are in demand among large international corporations. The need for specialists has formed the new professions of data scientist, ML engineer (machine learning engineer), DL engineer (deep learning specialist). In addition to theoretical training, thematic events helped to raise these specialists: ODS meetups and Big Data User Group, Datafest, AI Day, AI hackathons, Datatons, as well as student laboratories at IT companies, thanks to which the diffusion of knowledge within the community has significantly accelerated.

Export orientation

Belarusian service companies turned out to be more in demand in foreign markets than in domestic ones. Even before the “wave of AI technologies” began, large foreign companies began to establish their R&D offices in Belarus (Profitero, IHS Markit, Work Fusion, Yandex, Teqniksoft). It was at this time that the Belarusian IT community realized that it was much more profitable to sell their products and technologies, rather than good engineers for foreign projects. Thus, international outsourcing has become the main trend in the Belarusian market.

AI products developed in Belarus are used in healthcare, the automotive industry, Agriculture... The American startup Flo (an application for monitoring women's health) was founded by Belarusians and in two years has attracted $ 18 million in investments from partners of the Mangrove Capital fund and the Flint Capital fund. The app is currently available in 20 languages ​​on iOS and Android, and 60% of users are in the US and Europe.

The engineers of MapData, the Minsk R&D office of MapBox, have achieved significant success: they use computer vision in tasks of recognizing traffic conditions on a video stream. The Minsk office of Yandex is developing solutions for unmanned vehicles, speech recognition, and search technologies. Startup OneSoil helps farmers increase the efficiency of the use of their acreage, plan agricultural activities and predict yields. To do this, the company uses neural networks, computer vision and algorithms. machine learning who analyze satellite imagery... In one year, the company raised $ 500,000 in investments from Haxus funds, Bulba Ventures and investors Yuri Melnichk and Leo Lozner.

Perhaps, the Belarusian IT sector can serve as an example of how the state is able to help startups to give them the opportunity to grow, as well as to get a return on their own.

And the world has firmly established the reputation of the leading "IT-country" in the East European region. According to the Global Services 100 rating, Belarus took 13th place among 20 leading countries in the field of IT outsourcing and high-tech services. In addition, the TOP-100 of the world's largest companies in this area includes three companies with Belarusian roots: EPAM Systems, IBA Group and Intetics Co. Belarus ranks 48th in the UN IT-rating.

The direction of software development has existed in the republic since 1998. However, the key "starting point" from which the development of the IT sphere in Belarus began is considered September 2005, when the Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus No. 12 "On HTP" laid the legislative basis for successful work"Belarusian Silicon Valley" - the Park of High Technologies - and attracting investments in the software development industry.

Today Belarusian companies operating within the HTP are distinguished by progressive management and effective marketing solutions. The industry is characterized by client maturity, the complexity of the projects being implemented, the global service delivery network, the diversity of the portfolio of products and services, and the ability to work in niche markets.

Achievements of the Belarusian High Technologies Park

In September 2012, the HTP announced its first billion dollars in earnings. And by 2020, according to forecasts, this amount will come to the budget from HTP residents annually. According to the forecast of the International Finance Corporation, by 2020 the income of the IT industry in Belarus may reach $ 3-4 billion, or 4-5% of the country's total GDP in 2012. During the existence of the Park, with the participation of foreign investors, about 6 thousand jobs have been created.

Today 49% of HTP residents are companies with Belarusian capital and 51% with foreign capital. At the same time, experts predict an increase in the number of companies with foreign capital, since today ICT is one of the priority areas for direct foreign ones.

80% of the software produced in the Park is exported. 45% is supplied to the USA and Canada, 30% to European countries, 20% to Russia and the CIS.

By the volume of export of computer and information services per capita Belarus occupies a leading position in the region of Central and Eastern Europe. This figure was more than $ 35 per person in 2012. At the same time, the indicator of Belarus exceeds the identical indicators in Russia and Ukraine by two or more times.

By software consumers, the Park of High Technologies developed by residents, became famous world corporations, automobile concerns Peugeot (France), Mitsubishi (Japan), media holdings British Telecom (Great Britain), T-Mobile (Germany), Reuters (Great Britain-USA); fuel and energy concerns British Petroleum, (Great Britain), Rosenergoatom, RAO UES, London Stock Exchange, World Bank, Deutsche Bank, Central bank Russian Federation, world famous commodity producers Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble, Colgate-Palmolive (USA), Samsung (Korea).

Investment options in the Belarusian IT industry

It is possible to profitably invest significant cash... The main foreign investors in the Belarusian IT-sphere are companies from the USA, Great Britain, Israel, Germany and Russia.

According to the statements of representatives of foreign firms, foreign venture funds are ready to invest up to $ 1 million in the development of IT projects, and the initial stage of project implementation is of the greatest interest to them. So, in 2012, the Hi-Tech Park (HTP) attracted $ 62.5 million in foreign direct investment last year.

Today, the most common option for investors to enter the Belarusian IT industry is to create a new software development company in Belarus “from scratch”. In 2012, the number of HTP residents was replenished with 13 such companies and reached 118 organizations.

Another investment option is to attract specialized strategic investors who specialize in the IT sector. In this case foreign companies enter the market by acquiring Belarusian businesses.

Another example of attracting investment was the IPO of EPAM Systems on the New York Stock Exchange. In just the first hour of trading, these shares rose in price by 20% - from $ 12 to $ 14.4 per share.

Investor climate

According to the conditions for residents of the Park, enshrined in Presidential Decree No. 12 in 2005 and effective until 2020, HTPs are exempt from paying taxes, fees and other obligatory payments to the republican budget, state targeted budgetary and extra-budgetary funds paid on proceeds from the sale of goods, tax on profit and VAT from the sale of such products, land tax for the construction period (up to 3 years) and real estate tax.

Among the advantageous preferences - exemption from customs duties and VAT on the import of goods necessary for the implementation of activities, and reduced to 9% income tax on employees. These benefits are provided to the residents of the Park, whose main activities are the development and implementation of information and communication technologies and software, both in the domestic market and during export. Benefits are available for 12 more high-tech areas of activity - from the creation of products for micro- and nanoelectronics to aviation and rocket and space technology.

Selected successful Belarusian projects

Information and communication technologies are also among the priority areas where it is planned to attract investments. The number of companies operating in Belarus and producing intelligent products that are in demand all over the world is growing rapidly.

In 2011, the massively multiplayer online game World of Tanks, developed by the Belarusian studio Wargaming.net, achieved a record officially registered by the Guinness Book of Records. MMO-action was able to simultaneously collect on one server the largest number of players in history - more than 90 thousand people. By the end of 2012, the authors of World of Tanks are planning to get $ 200 million in profit.

Among Belarusian game developers, Viaden Media also stands out - the country's largest in the field of game applications for mobile platforms and social networks. One of her latest programs is All-in Fitness, a top-downloaded sports app in dozens of countries around the world.

The positions of Belarusian developers are also strong in the category of applications for communication. For example, the authors of the popular Viber program, which competes with Skype in the mobile market, are Israelis. The main office of the company is also located in Israel, the product of which is already used by more than 100 million people in the world. However, all software development Viber are carried out in Belarus. Among the main advantages of Belarusian programmers: the company's management emphasizes the ability to think and act outside the textbook, to find non-trivial solutions.

Belarusian companies are traditionally among the leading providers of business solutions. Among the automated systems of the ERP class (enterprise resource planning) in the CIS countries, the product of the largest developer of ERP systems in the region, the Galaktika corporation, whose central office is located in the Belarusian capital, stands out. Today the software of the company is used by more than 6 thousand enterprises of the countries of the commonwealth, representing various sectors of the economy.

Created 20 years ago in Minsk, the alliance of IT companies "IBA Group" is today one of the largest developers of solutions and services in the field of high technologies in Central and Eastern Europe. More than 20 companies operate under the IBA brand in Belarus, Russia, Ukraine, USA, Germany, Great Britain, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan and Cyprus.

The IBA Group portfolio includes over 1.5 thousand projects completed for customers on 5 continents and solving problems in various sectors of the economy, including Information Technology, telecommunications, transport and energy.

One of the leading players in the Belarusian IT market is EPAM Systems - largest supplier services in the development of design (custom) software and solutions in Central and Eastern Europe. Founded in 1993, today the company has offices in 12 countries around the world.

The scale of the company allows working with the largest customers on the most complex and interesting projects, many of which are innovative in nature. A special place among EPAM projects is occupied by software development for world leaders in the software industry. The company successfully cooperates with leading universities in our country. This collaboration results in joint IT labs.