“Romania no longer has a cost advantage. It’s gone.”
Having a programmer in Romania is now as expensive as in Spain or similar countries. Romania still does have an advantage over Silicon Valley, but that is a different matter altogether, Bonte added.
The entry of giants like Microsoft, Oracle and IBM in Romania, which hired thousands of people created a fierce competition over skilled IT people so salaries in the industry have been rising over the past few years. An experienced programmer is now earning several thousand euros.
The Romanian market has evolved a lot, is very different (from what it was seven or eight years ago i.e.), Alexis Bonte says. Companies now have to bet on talent not costs, and he himself will be looking very carefully at talent in his team for any new investment he will make Romania, Bonte said during this year’s ZF Mobilio conference.
He has invested EUR7.5 million in online startups in Romania so far.
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)