The economy of Sofia remains the biggest regional economy in the country with 42.8% of Bulgaria’s GDP or over 51 billion. This is five times more than the economy of the second-largest region in our country, Plovdiv, and seven times more than
the economy of Varna region, shows our latest report titled “Sofia: Economic and Investment Profile 2022”, prepared by the Institute for Market Economics. The document is now available for download from our site here.
According to the analysis, the city’s economy is quickly overcoming the effects of the pandemic and is keeping the trend of population influx and attracting talent and workforce from the rest of the country providing much better opportunities for education and career development. The gross domestic product per capita reaches BGN 38.9 thousand, which is more than 2.2 times higher than the average for the country. Between 2017-2020, the gross domestic product per capita in Sofia recorded a growth of nearly 26% compared to a growth of 19% for the country.
Sofia gets ahead of all other economic centers in Bulgaria dominating the sector of Services, whose gross added value is over BGN 38 billion or over 86% of the added value in the city’s economy. The gross added value in the Industry sector reaches over BGN 6 billion and brings the remaining nearly 14% of the added value to the economy. Thus, the capital contributes to ¼ of the added value of Industry and more than ½ of the added value of Services in Bulgaria.
The economic profile of Sofia is strongly influenced by the dynamic development of the wide periphery of the Capital. Many industrial enterprises and logistics sites are located on the territory of neighboring and/or nearby municipalities. The added value of Industry in Sofia (region) reaches nearly BGN 2 billion, which is mainly formed by the operations of mining and processing enterprises in Sredna Gora and enterprises in industrial zones such as Bozhurishte, Kostinbrod, etc. The strong industry in the periphery of Sofia, as well as the daily labor migration to the Capital, support the thesis that the economy of Sofia should be considered as an investment destination that covers a wider territory than that of the Sofia Municipality itself.
More highlights
- In 2021, the economy of Sofia reports stable growth, with net sales revenues of non-financial enterprises reaching nearly BGN 171 billion – a growth of 22.6%
At an official ceremony in Sofia, the German-Bulgarian Chamber of Industry and Commerce presented its annual German Economy Awards which highlights companies with a significant contribution to the development of Bulgarian-German economic relations for the previous year.
According to the data presented during the event, trade between Sofia and Berlin reached a record of 11 billion euros in 2022. Despite the pandemic and the war in Ukraine, Germany remains the main trade partner of our country with exported goods and services for 6,195 billion euros and imports for 4,932 billion euros. The Chamber believes that both countries should encourage projects and investments in areas such as energy, decarbonization, and sustainability.
AHK Bulgarien hands out statuettes in four categories – “Large Enterprise”, “Small and Medium Enterprise”, “Social Responsibility” and “Startup Company”. Among the evaluation criteria are: investments in Bulgaria, the number of created new jobs, increase in trade with Germany (import or export), initiatives towards increasing the qualifications of employees, environment and climate action projects, social impact, innovations, energy-saving and environmentally friendly technologies, etc.
We are glad that again Sofia-based companies have been awarded. Bosch Bulgaria received recognition for their activities in the “Large enterprise” category, Dronamics for “Small and medium-sized enterprise”, again Bosch Bulgaria in the “Social responsibility” category, and Varna’s Kinetik Automotive was awarded for a start-up company.
At the invitation of the Chamber, our CEO Dr. Maria Hristova joined the ceremony. Among the official guests were also the Minister of Innovation and Growth Stefan Savov, the ambassadors in both countries – H.E. Irene Plank and HE Elena Shekerletova, as well as representatives of AHK member companies.
On January 26, the hybrid event “Corporate Venturing in SEE for Sustainable Startups” was held in Sofia. The forum was initiated by Sofiyska voda, operated by Veolia, and The Recursive. At the invitation of the organizers, Maria Hristova the CEO of Invest Sofia and Kristin Dermendzhiev, Senior Expert at the Investment Analysis department of Invest Sofia, and our CEO Dr. Maria Hristova attended the event together with corporate innovation leaders, startup investors, and founders of startup companies that develop solutions for clever resource and waste management, clean environment, and climate change.
The event aimed to show what is the value of incubating cleantech, greentech, and sustainability-related technologies in a corporate context. Sofiyska voda, part of Veolia, presented best practices of regional cooperation between corporate innovators and venture capital investment funds. The panel discussions also highlighted opportunities for growth by connecting sustainable startups with relevant stakeholders and investment funds in South East Europe and beyond.
In addition to the discussion panels “How corporates work with startups” and “Financing opportunities for startups”, part of the event was a pitching session for startup clean and sustainable resource management solutions and successful collaboration with corporate innovation leaders. Two of the projects presented during the session are smart solutions developed by Sofia-based companies – Gridmetrics and SatGeo.
Gridmetrics offers a solution that optimizes industrial processes through digital twins and machine learning models to optimize and reduce energy consumption. The startup partners with Sofiyska voda for the optimization of the operation of pump stations according to the supply demand in periods of high and low consumption. As a result of the dynamic and automated control of the pumps’ activity, the project reports a nearly 30% average reduction in electricity consumption and 36% electricity savings in low-demand hours, when the pumps operate in a slower mode without disrupting the water supply needs.
SatGeo develops a technology based on satellite imagery that helps in the early detection and prevention of accidents on the water supply network.. In 2021, the project raised funding from a joint acceleration programme led by the innovation agency Innovation Starter and the French Veolia, owner of Sofiyska voda. The solution has been integrated into the company’s activities that ensure the water supply in Sofia. Over 50 accidents have been prevented, and hard-to-locate leaks have been detected, some of which are causing a water loss of 20 liters per second. On an annual basis, SatGeo’s
The meeting of the Chairman of the Sofia Municipal Council Georgi Georgiev and the management team of Invest Sofia with the Executive Director of Teva Pharma Nikolay Hadjidonchev and Anna Duneva, Senior Director of Facility Management Europe at the company, lasted for more than an hour. The Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Invest Sofia, Nikolay Stoynev, the CEO of the Agency, Dr. Maria Hristova, and the head of the Investment Analysis department, Viktor Gusev, also took part.
A few months ago, the company received a “Green Card” from Invest Sofia as one of the key investors in the city. Over 400 employees are part of Teva’s head office in Sofia, including expert teams of global departments that manage the operations of global structures of the pharmaceutical company. In Bulgaria, Teva is the largest pharma producer in terms of production capacity and the number of employees. In Teva’s head office in Sofia, various intelligent solutions have been introduced to save energy and improve working conditions. As a next step, Teva continues to push the use of electric vehicles into the company’s operations.
“Teva just launched a global green campaign. All Teva employees can contribute to various nature-positive initiatives,” the company’s Executive Director Nikolay Hadjidonchev announced. The Sofia City Council Chairman Georgi Georgiev shared details about Sofia Municipality’s new recycling campaign in schools. “It is important to teach children to care for the environment. More than 200 schools have no recycling containers,” said Mr. Georgiev. He also presented municipal projects in the field of health care and care for vulnerable groups. Future joint initiatives were also discussed during the meeting.
The team of Invest Sofia team invites Sofia-based small and medium-sized enterprises to participate in the first 2023 session for the selection of investment projects organized by the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI).
The initiative is being held for another year and is in partnership with the consulting companies Ernst & Young Bulgaria and Investor Relations Services. The session aims at supporting Bulgarian SMEs through consultations on different funding opportunities – loans, equity, grants, hybrid, financing through the Beam market of the Bulgarian Stock Exchange, or any other type of investment according to the specific project and area of activity of the companies. Connecting enterprises with potential funding partners is also part of the session.
Companies can submit their applications until January 9, by filling in the e-form at:
https://globaleysurvey.ey.com/jfe/form/SV_djmc8SjiTiCtVtQ
As a next step, an expert committee will assess and evaluate the proposals. The evaluation process is due on January 12, and the approved candidates will be notified by January 13.
In the final stage, the selected companies will have the opportunity to present their projects in a pitching session in front of investors and funding institutions. The event will take place on January 20. All candidates will receive mentoring support and assistance during their preparation for the pitching day.
Don’t miss the opportunity. Apply here!
The Bulgarian Startup Association – BESCO presented its annual awards, which honor the achievements of key players in the Bulgarian entrepreneurial ecosystem. Statuettes were awarded in five categories during a ceremony where the Association presented “The Way of the Unicorn” – a short movie that tells the success stories of the BESCO Awards 2022 winner companies.
The first Bulgarian unicorn PayHawk grabbed prizes in three categories – Startup of the Year, Founder of the Year, and Deal of the Year. In March, the fintech reached a valuation of $1 billion in an investment round led by the US fund Lightspeed Venture Partners.
PlanDelta took the award in the category Newcomer of the year. The Sofia-based startup develops solutions for flexible financial planning. The product has already attracted funding twice – 350K euros in a round led by the Bulgarian fund Eleven Ventures and 2.3M euros risk investment in a round led by the international investor RTP Global.
In the last fifth category – Investor of the year the winner is Eleven Ventures fund.
The BESCO Awards 2022 ceremony this year coincided with the 5th anniversary of the Bulgarian Startup Association. The events were celebrated with partners and members of the Association and the official release of the movie “The Way of the Unicorn” which you can watch on BESCO’s YouTube channel here.