1. Electronic invoicing in Europe
27-28 April 2010
Madrid
Sarianne Reinikkala
Entrepreneur
sarianne.reinikkala@finncontainers.fi

2. Fincontainers Oy Ltd
• Owner: Sarianne Reinikkala
• Established on 1996
• 3 employees
• Container sales, leasing, Turnover 3 Meur (2008)
equipping and transportation 3500000
3000000
• B2B & B2C business 2500000
2000000
• E-shop: kontti.fi/eshop, 1999
Euro
1500000
• EDI/XML pilot project 1999
1000000
500000
• Year 2002: We want e-invoices! 0
1997 - 2008

3. Work method invoicing (old vs new)
Year 2002
PAPER INVOICE BOOK KEEPING
eINVOICE
”Accounting” at FC Yritystiimi/FC
1. Opening the envelope 1. Receiving the invoice, checking and accounting
2. Checking the invoice
2. Payment to Bank via Internet
3. Archiving the invoice
4. Getting from archive 3. Checking the payment
5. Payment of the invoice 4. Totals to BK (manually)
6. Archiving the invoice
7. Balance Statement
5.BK reports, once a month
8. Checking the payment
9. Invoices to BK
10. Book-keeping
1 minute,
3 minutes, 11. Archiving the invoice
4 steps
12. Returning the invoices & reports
11 steps
BK=book-keeping/-keeper

4. Decentralized information system
SaaS started 10.7.2002
Accounting company
E-invoices 7/02 –> 12/03
Restart with e-invoices spring 2010 ->
Remote work
Service providers didn’t continue
Service providers didn’t continue
the service -> too small volymes.
the service -> too small volymes. Internet
ICT-SME took over the service.
ICT-SME took over the service.
No e-invoices!
No e-invoices!
Office Dicame (ISP)
ADSL Authorities
EDI-services
Finncontainers’
local network Internet bank
Webpages & e-shop
CRM (SaaS)
Email server eBR -> Netbaron
(SaaS)
Mobile Email ContainerWiki

5. Conclusion (from Finland)
• Finland started e-invoicing with pilots projects on 1999,
with different formats and not modern software for SMEs
• Operators would have to work more with each other and
be more transparent
• SMEs did not find the advantages of e-invoicing and
applications / services were incomplete
• ICT-SMEs should also be service providers and work
together with operators
• SMEs need modern and long-term SaaS services
• Buying a software should be easy / transparent pricing
• Finland has now good applications for e-invoicing
• Requests for e-invoices have increased

6. Future
• We need urgently ISO-standard with core information
content
• VAT -> Equal treatment
• ICT-SMEs and accounting firms should provide
assistance to SMEs
• Commercial training should provide information on e-
invoices and real time financial applications
• Good examples are needed (on e-invoicing)
• SME’s software rental prices should be < 70 eur
/person/month + 0,25 – 0,35 €/e-invoices and < 0,90 €/
e-letter.
• Buying or renting new software should be easy.
• Not only e-invoices but also e-orders, e-accounting, e-
account lists -> all standardized!

7. Finland
• We have electronic invoicing addresses in the same
place
• We have operator's criteria for ability to work properly in
roaming network
• We have operator interconnection table with operational
preparedness
• We have glossary of electronic invoicing
• We have listing of financial programs incl. possibilty of e-
invoicing
• We have (XML) e-invoices: B2B = 35%, B2C = 5%
(Total 550 million invoices and the figures are estimates)