Press

The self-employed are the group most exposed to work-related stress, while the majority lack access to health care. Figures from Statistics Sweden show that severe sleep problems, long-term health problems and anxiety have increased significantly among entrepreneurs since 2019. Fintech company Froda and psychology platform Ahum are now launching a joint initiative to educate about sustainable entrepreneurship. Froda's customers will have access to Ahum's guides and digital tools for 12 months, as well as a free therapy session.

A survey on the health of the self-employed conducted by Ahum shows that factors such as market uncertainty, the economy, work-family conflict, and high competition have the greatest impact on well-being. In addition, almost 80% say they work via email and phone in their spare time, and a quarter find it difficult to separate work and private life.

- As important as it is that entrepreneurs in Sweden are given the opportunity to grow, it is equally important that this is done in a sustainable and long-term way. It should go without saying that all self-employed people have access to the same benefits as an employee. We see the collaboration with Ahum as an important part of the work to make it more sustainable to be self-employed," says Olle Lundin, CEO of Froda.

In Sweden, there are about 1.4 million active companies, many of which are self-employed and lack health care. Studies show that proactive mental training is effective in preventing burnout, anxiety and other mental health problems. Therefore, the collaboration between Froda and Ahum aims to make tools and knowledge available to one of the most vulnerable groups in working life.

- Many self-employed people report high life satisfaction because they can influence their work to a high degree. They also see a high workload as positive because it means the business is doing well. The difficulty with stress and burnout is that many self-employed people do not notice it until it has gone too far, precisely because of these two factors. Therefore, it is incredibly important to prevent stress and other mental health problems in time," says Ellen Risto, Chief Psychologist at Ahum.

The collaboration between Froda and Ahum means that Froda offers its customers access to Ahum's guides and digital tools for 12 months, as well as a free therapy session.

Read more at: www.froda.se/hållbar-tillväxt

About the survey
The survey includes statistics compiled by Statistics Sweden between 2018 and 2021 in the categories Health conditions, physical and mental disorders and Work environment (gainfully employed 16-74 years). The mapping also included published research articles in the field as well as a report on the short-term and long-term consequences of Covid-19 for the self-employed, which is part of a global research project at Stockholm University.

About Froda
Froda was founded in 2015 with the idea of giving small and medium-sized companies the same opportunity to grow as large ones. By digitizing the process, Froda has made it possible to help more companies with financing tailored to their unique business and its needs. Today, Froda is one of Sweden's fastest growing fintech companies and has helped more than 50,000 companies grow. The company is a credit institution covered by the state deposit guarantee and is under the supervision of the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority (FI).

About Ahum
Ahum is passionate about everyone's right to feel good and perform well, both at home and at work. With more than 140 affiliated therapists and digital tools, they can provide the right support to everyone. To both employees and private individuals. When it's needed. If needed.

On November 11, applications for the "Female Entrepreneur of the Future" scholarship will open. The grant is aimed at female entrepreneurs who are either planning to start a business, or have started their first business in the last year.*

Only a quarter of all entrepreneurs in Sweden are women, which is below the EU average. Since 1980, the number of female entrepreneurs has increased by one percentage point. To encourage more women to start and run businesses, fintech company Froda launched a scholarship for future female entrepreneurs earlier this year. The aim is to give women who want to start or have just started a business the opportunity to turn their ideas into reality. The scholarship, which is being awarded for the first time, is worth SEK 100,000 and will be awarded annually to a female entrepreneur.

- Sweden is below the EU average when it comes to female entrepreneurship. This is despite being one of the most gender equal countries in the world. To break the negative trend, we need more female entrepreneurs and role models. With the scholarship, we want to help improve the conditions for female entrepreneurs and give more women the opportunity to invest in their ideas," says Olle Lundin, CEO of Froda.

To apply for the scholarship, you need to have either started a business after January 1, 2022, or have a business idea that you will launch within one year. The application is open until December 31, 2022 and the award ceremony will take place on International Women's Day, March 8, 2023.

The application period for the scholarship is between November 11 and December 31, 2022.

Read more about the scholarship and apply here: https://froda.se/stipendier/framtidens-kvinnliga-foretagare/

About the scholarship "Female Entrepreneur of the Future"
The Female Entrepreneur of the Future was established in 2022 and is awarded annually to a female entrepreneur. The scholarship is SEK 100,000 and aims to give women with ambitions to run a business a start-up capital that enables them to invest in their idea. Requirements for the application are:

• Identify as a woman
• Registered in Sweden
• Of legal age at the time of application
• Not have operated a business before, or have established their first business no earlier than January 1, 2022
  

* After January 1, 2022.

Swedish small businesses continue to invest in their operations, according to new statistics from fintech company Froda. As a result of the challenging external environment, there is also a shift in entrepreneurs investing more consciously rather than increasing overall liquidity, compared to previous years.

The company now presents new figures from the third quarter of the year, showing how small businesses are choosing to invest in their operations. The statistics show that the three categories that are increasing the most compared to the same period last year are covering unforeseen expenses (27.5%), investments in inventory (18.2%) and investments in machinery (5.5%).

- We see that many continue to invest in their businesses. Given the impending recession, the large increase in purchases of inventories and machinery is interesting. A likely explanation may be the dramatic price increases we have seen during the year, which motivates companies to make planned purchases and investments sooner rather than later," says Olle Lundin, CEO of Froda.

The figures also show that small businesses have a reduced need to cover general liquidity. The category has decreased by 11 percent compared to Q2 and as much as 23.7 percent since the same period last year.

- The fact that the need to raise external working capital has decreased may indicate that small businesses are making more conscious investments ahead of an impending recession and trying to keep their debt down. At the same time, we see a large increase in the need to cover unforeseen expenses. This is probably linked to the large general price increases in society, not least in the energy sector and the increased costs of purchases from abroad," concludes Olle Lundin.

About the statistics
Every quarter, Froda compiles statistics showing what Swedish small businesses invest in the last quarter. The statistics come from Froda's databases and are based on information about thousands of companies.

Contingencies
+ 27.5% compared to the previous year.
+ 37.4% compared to the previous quarter.

Machinery
+ 5.5% compared to the previous year.
+ 30.8% compared to the previous quarter.

Purchases of stocks
+ 18.2% compared with the previous year.
- 9.9% compared with the previous quarter.

General liquidity/working capital
- 23.7 percent compared to the previous year.
- 11.0 percent compared to the previous quarter.

Seasonal investments
- 0.5% compared with the previous year.
+ 12.7% compared with the previous quarter.