With a growth rate of 40 per cent and offices in six countries, Signicat already has a well-established European market. Next year, the company will open new offices in Germany and Spain.

Signicat has specialised in electronic signatures and identity solutions through cloud technology. The solutions meet international standards, such as GDPR, PSD2 and eIDAS, which are being introduced through EU legislation.

“We are leading in Europe in our niche and see major international opportunities based on the regulatory changes that are entering into force,” says General Manager Gunnar Nordseth.

The way out into the world
The typical customer is a medium-sized bank or financial institution. An agreement with Robobank in the Netherlands, however, has placed Signicat in the company of the very largest banks. Robobank is a market leader with 40 per cent of the market share in its home country. 

The road to the international market progressed via cross-border customers, where international companies with offices in Norway were to be integrated.

“Our philosophy for expanding internationally has been to ‘follow the customer’. Now we are standing on our own two feet in the European markets, and half of our revenue comes from our operations abroad,” says the responsible partner, Anders Ljungqvist. 

He emphasises that the willingness to enter into partnerships with international companies is an important door opener into new markets. 

Growing pains and adaptations
Strong growth also presents challenges.

“We are growing in the number of countries in which we operate, in complexity, in culture and in the organisation. Managing to scale our business with the necessary adaptations to Signicat’s organisation, procedures and expertise is demanding. It is hard to find the right people who can combine development and business understanding, and be good at customer relations at the same time,” says Ljungqvist.

He is optimistic about Norway’s potential to acquire a leading position in fintech.

“We have come very far in Norway with respect to digital maturity, but we have not yet been clever enough to use our expertise internationally. We have a huge potential there,” says Ljungqvist.