TALLINN, ESTONIA — Latitude59, the flagship startup and tech event of Estonia, successfully hosted its second satellite event in Singapore, gathering a 50-member delegation from the “New Nordics,” including founders, investors, and ecosystem representatives from Estonia, Sweden, and Finland to foster connections with leading Asian corporations and global investors.
According to a press statement released on Wednesday by Marina Bachmann, Press Officer for Latitude59, Kai Isand, the conference’s Program Director and lead organizer of the Singapore event, emphasized the strategic importance of this engagement.
“Strengthening cooperation between the New Nordics and Asia is essential, and Latitude59 serves as a platform to make that happen, bringing together startup founders, investors, and representatives of support organizations under one roof,” Isand said.
“This creates opportunities for meaningful connections and trust building, which are vital foundations for global collaboration, innovation, and scaling to international markets.”
The event, Latitude59 Singapore: Exploring New Nordics, was held as an official side event of Asia’s leading technology conference, SWITCH.
Singapore’s Minister for Trade and Industry, Alvin Tan, underscored the natural synergy between the nations during his opening remarks. “Singapore and Estonia are small, advanced, and tech savvy nations, natural partners in innovation,” Tan emphasized.
“We both rank high on global innovation indexes and share the same drive to build vibrant startup communities. Events like Latitude59 Singapore and SWITCH bring our ecosystems closer, helping startups from both regions exchange ideas and create lasting business relationships.”
A central theme throughout the discussions was the vital role of cross border collaboration in attracting investment to smaller ecosystems, with speakers agreeing that genuine trust must always precede any deal.
Margus Uudam, co-founder and partner at the venture capital fund Karma Ventures, noted that the success of both Singapore and Nordic ecosystems is built on similar foundations.
“Collaboration between small countries is an inevitable necessity, alliances build resilience and opportunities that are so much needed in today’s world,” Uudam said.
“Success achieved so far can only be accelerated by building more relationships and cross border investing.”
The importance of these alliances was reinforced by Sharon Lim, Executive Director of the Singapore Venture and Private Capital Association (SVCA). “Latitude59 demonstrates how small nations like Estonia and Singapore punch above our weight,” she said.
“The Singapore Venture and Private Capital Association looks forward to engaging more with Europe and the New Nordics to explore areas of convergence across our ecosystems to power the next generation of innovators.”
Latitude59’s global expansion continues next in South Africa with events in Cape Town on November 12 and Johannesburg on November 14. The conference will then return to East Africa for the Latitude59 Kenya Edition 2025 from December 3 to 5, which will feature a startup competition for global teams.
Editor: Gabriel Ani
