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Outsourcing in Bulgaria: Why?

Business process outsourcing in Bulgaria

Within less than 10 years Bulgaria has established itself as a leading global destination for outsourcing and nearshoring

The winners in Europe are Bulgaria and Romania, which continue to stay comfortably in the upper half of the
index, at 17th and 25th, respectively. Members of the European Union but with lower cost profile than most other member states, they are the new offshoring stars in Europe.
Shifting Geography of Offshoring, A. T. Kearney Global Services Location Index™, 2011

According to the Yearbook data of the British National Outsourcing Association (NOA) Bulgaria once again is among the stars in the off shoring and outsourcing industry, this time as a popular destination for the pharmaceutical sector.

Employees in the Bulgarian BPO sector grew from 0 to 15 000+ over the last 10 years
Clients in Western Europe, North America and Asia are served from the BPO sector in Bulgaria – the majority being Fortune 500 or Fortune 1000 companies
The average BPO company presented in this brochure provides services in more than 25 languages

…due to a qualified and talented workforce, competent in many languages and technical areas…

…If you want first-class mathematicians, try looking in Bulgaria.
William Fitzsimmons, Dean of Admissions & Financial Aid, Harvard College

With an abundance of educated and multilingual prospective employees, Bulgaria is certain to continue to make inroads into global business process outsourcing.
Datamonitor

Sofia GDC is considered a strategic location for IBM. The qualified young team has allowed it to innovate and establish best practices that are implemented across the IBM network of global delivery centers.
Joseph Lazarus, General manager, IBM GDC Bulgaria

Bulgaria prides itself on the system of foreign language secondary schools where after a year of intensive study of a foreign language students switch to studying main subjects in the respective foreign language.

BPO industry in Bulgaria has significant growth potential

Besides Sofia, other major cities such as Plovdiv, Varna, Burgas, Veliko Turnovo, Blagoevgrad and Ruse have excellent university programs and significant BPO potential
About 60 000 students graduate annually from all Bulgarian universities. About 50% of the graduates obtain degrees in majors suitable for the needs of the BPO industry
Estimated 80 000 Bulgarian students study abroad and present a major labour source for BPO companies in Bulgaria
Costs of doing business in Bulgaria are the lowest in SEE with average salary of € 327/ month and office rent price of €9-19/sq.m. Cost of labor and real estate are likely to remain relatively low in the medium term

Digital Marketing Outsourcing in Bulgaria

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SharpMedia / Bulgaria / Tell me more about Bulgaria

Tell Me More About Bulgaria

Bulgaria is just a short flight away from the main destinations

Bulgaria has a strategic location, political stability and low costs of doing business

Bulgaria is strategically located and provides access to the following markets:

South-East Europe – a 122 million inhabitant, high growth market
European Union – Bulgaria offers the lowest cost access to a market of 500 million consumers
Russia/CIS, Middle East and North Africa

Bulgaria offers a combination of political and macroeconomic stability and incentives for doing business:

Stable parliamentary democracy, EU, NATO and WTO member
Bulgaria’s currency is fixed to the Euro under a currency board arrangement
Lowest tax rate and one of the lowest labour costs in the EU coupled with special incentives for investors
EU funding – more than €10 bln in EU funds over the next years

Bulgaria: Summary Statistics

Popilation:

7.4 million

Labour force:

3.4 million

Urban Population:

73 %

Capital:

Sofia

Time zone:

EET (UTC+2)

Summer (DST):

EEST (UTC+3)

Total area:

110 879 sq. km

Land area:

108 489 sq. km

Water area:

2 390 sq. km

Climate:

temperate

Languages:

Bulgarian (official)

85.2 %

Turkish

9.1 %

Roma

4.2 %

English, German, Russian, French:

widely spoken

Religions:

Christian Orthodox

76 %

Muslim

10 %

Other

14 %

Currency:

Lev (BGN)

Fixed exchange rate:

€ 1 = BGN 1.95583

Corporate income tax:

10 %

Personal income tax:

10 %

VAT (standard):

20 %

Government type:

Parliamentary Democracy

Supreme legislative power:

Unicameral 240-seat

National Assembly

Executive state body:

Council of Ministers, head:
Prime Minister

EU member since 2007
NATO member since 2004
WTO member since 1996

Source: Bulgarian National Bank, National Statistical Institute

Bulgaria has exemplary macroeconomic fundamentals

Government debt and government deficit in Bulgaria, Romania, Poland and EU 27 (% of GDP), 2011

2012 Economic Snapshot:

GDP (€ bn):

39.7

Exports (€ bn):

26.5

Net FDI (% of GDP):

3.5

GDP growth (%):

0.8

Unemployment (%):

11.4

Inflation rate (annual change,%):

3.7

Government deficit (% of GDP):

-0.5е

Government debt (% of GDP):

18.9

Current account balance (% of GDP):

– 1.3

Long-term credit ratings:

Moody’s:

Baa2 stable

S&P:

BBB stable

Fitch:

BBB stable

Source: Bulgarian National Bank. National Statistics Institute. Ministry of Finance Bulgaria

The Bulgarian economy had a constant growth of above 6% in the period 2000-2008
The economy stabilized in 2011 with GDP growth of 1.8% for 2011, and 0.8 % in 2012
The budget deficit in Bulgaria is one of the lowest in Europe for for 2012: -0.5e%
There are no currency fluctuations due to a currency board, introduced in 1997 – the Bulgarian Lev is pegged at 1.95583 to the Euro
Bulgaria has the lowest government debt to GDP ratio in the EU27 in 2012

Bulgaria is the only European country with an increased credit rating by Moody’s since the beginning of 2010.

Bulgaria offers a unique lifestyle experience within easy reach of Sofia…

Bulgaria is an attractive destination even for outsourcing of Hollywood productions starring actors such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sylvester Stallone, Bruce Willis, Chuck Norris, Scarlett Johansson.

… and boasts some of Europe’s greatest historical treasures

Sofia is among the oldest capital cities in Europe and the only city besides Jerusalem with an Orthodox church, a Catholic cathedral, a mosque and a synagogue within a square kilometer.

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