Nineteen Polish entities have been recognized in the 16th edition of Deloitte’s ranking of fastest-growing innovative technology companies in Central Europe. The main, Technology Fast 50, list is topped by the Czech Simplicity, followed immediately by Sky Cash Poland. Last year’s winner, Szallas.hu from Hungary, comes third. Polish companies developing innovative Big Data and mobile app technologies stand out as the Rising Stars.

The list includes nineteen entities from Poland, twelve of which have been recognized in the main, Technology Fast 50, category in addition to seven ranked as Rising Stars. Romania, with its ten representatives, comes second in terms of the number of entities recognized in the main category of the ranking. It is followed by Croatia with its eight companies. Also enterprises from Slovakia (5), the Czech Republic (5), Hungary (4), Lithuania (2), Serbia (2) and Bulgaria (2) are present this year in the main category.).

In 2015, the criteria to be satisfied by a company to be included in the list have been modified. The most important change concerns shortening the revenue generation period considered by one year (both in the main and the Big Five categories). At present, a period of four years is taken into account as compared to five years before. Thus, this year’s analysis focuses on the financial performance between 2011 and 2014.

The Czech software company, Simplicity, which was ranked sixth in the Rising Stars sub-category last year, tops the Deloitte Technology Fast 50 list. The second position is also held by a debutant – Sky Cash Poland, based in Warsaw and offering mobile payment solutions. The winner of last year’s edition, Szallas.hu, comes third. It’s incredible that this year’s list is topped by a company which last year was too young to be considered in the main ranking. This shows the potential of entities whose services perfectly address the market needs in addition to capturing the spirit of the times. However, it is equally important that the pace of growth of the companies recognized in our ranking be sufficient for them to be named the Big Five soon, says Adam ChróÅ›cielewski, Deloitte Partner, CE Program Leader. Two other Polish companies have also made it to the top ten, namely Netguru (5) and Traffic Trends (10)..

Deloitte’s main list, Technology Fast 50, includes as many as thirty-eight new companies, three of them have gone up, eight down and one maintained last year’s position.

The average increase in revenue of the entities recognized in the main category amounted to 560 percent (2011 versus 2014), which is lower than in the preceding year (698 percent). The results of innovative technology companies are a far cry from the ones produced a few years ago, when the average revenue growth exceeded a thousand percent. Please note that the growth rate in 2012 reached 1026 percent. Despite that drop, innovative technology companies continue to grow considerably and incomparably faster than entities whose field of specialization is different. This clearly shows that it pays off to invest in technologies, while innovative thinking is key for rapid growth, says Magdalena Burnat Mikosz, Innovation Consulting and R&D and Government Incentives Managing Partner, Deloitte. The average increase in revenue of the Polish companies ranked in the main category reached almost 540 percent.

The Polish entities listed in the ranking operate all around the country. Most of them are based in Warsaw (nine), four in PoznaÅ„ and one in Gliwice, GdaÅ„sk, Kraków, WrocÅ‚aw, Piaseczno and Grodzisk Wielkopolski, each.

The areas in which the applicant may carry on its business have also been changed this year. The new classification reflects the nature of the innovative technology market better in addition to increasing the number of applicants. The new segments include software, hardware, communication, media, clean technologies and life sciences, with the last one comprising biotechnology, pharmaceuticals or medical technology. Both this and last year’s Technology Fast 50 lists were dominated by software companies, which account for more than a half of the ranked entities (52 percent a year before).

The Rising Stars category may be called Polish as Poland-based entities hold seven out of twelve positions in the ranking. Code Wise, a Polish business established in 2011, whose revenue growth reached 4555 percent, is an undisputed leader. Its result exceeds the growth rate of last year’s winner in this category almost twice. The latest Rising Stars list shows that companies focusing on implementation of software innovations based on Big Data analysis and mobile capabilities are experiencing the fastest growth. Development of innovative solutions relying on new technologies may be a recipe for success, concludes Magdalena Burnat-Mikosz.

The whole report is available at www.deloitte.com/fast50ce.