The number of Estonian-founded businesses in Finland has more than doubled over the last few years, but estimates of their exact number vary between 1,000 and 5,900.
Finnish daily Helsingin Sanomat said on Sunday that the norm is a small construction company, janitorial company or beauty salon, employing up to four people.
Finnish tax authorities put the number of businesses with an Estonian background at 3,500, more than double the number of only two years ago, while the Estonian embassy in Helsinki said the figure is closer to 1,000.
The Finnish Business Information System said 5,900 companies in the country have been founded by Estonians, but that figure includes dormant companies. Four years ago, that figure was less than 3,000.
The daily said the reasons for leaving Estonia to set up ventures in Finland are higher salaries, a larger market, a lower level of black market activity and the reliability of the economy. Some Estonians made the move for family reasons, it said.
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