When he was sent to Moscow in late 2010 to launch Lamoda, 26-year-old Niels Tonsen had no experience of Russia but already numerous years of experience in Internet projects – including working for German incubator Rocket Internet and its projects Groupon International and Zalando. The goal – to build Russia’s online leader in the footwear …
Fresh Solutions, a St. Petersburg-based publisher of cloud-based CRM solutions, has secured 37 million rubles (a little more than $1.1 million) from Imperious Group. The startup was valued at $6 million pre-money, East-West Digital News learned from the press service of Ingria, the major St. Petersburg technopark that incubates the startup. Founded in 2011, Fresh …
LitRes, a leading online retailer of Russian language e-books, has raised $5 million from Russian Internet Technology Fund (RITF), a $50 million fund established earlier this year. The company’s valuation has not been disclosed, but the fund stated that it had received “a significant stake” in the company. With $7 million in sales in 2012, …
E-book distributor LitRes raises $5 million from Russian Internet Technology Fund Read More
Cinarra Systems, a developer of mobile operator analytics and monetization technologies, announced yesterday a $4.5 million Series A round of “venture capital and strategic financing.” The round was led by Russia’s Almaz Capital, while Cisco and undisclosed individual investors also participated. Geoffrey Baehr, a general partner at Almaz Capital, will join the company’s board. Cinarra …
Last week Maxfield Capital, a Moscow-based $100 million venture fund, and Altair, the investment vehicle of serial business angel Igor Ryabenkiy, announced a seed-stage investment in Qbaka, an award-winning startup developing a solution to track JavaScript errors on web services. The round amounted to $200,000, but may be completed with other investors, Qbaka’s co-founder Andrey …
Former executives of Finam Global, the venture arm of leading Russian financial group Finam, have launched a $30 million high-tech fund to invest in “fast-growing markets of considerable size.” Christened ‘Flint Capital,’ the fund comes as the fifth sizeable one launched in Russia since the beginning of the year – after FRII, a $200 million …
Not only is Mrs Tigipko one of these exquisitely educated and beautiful ladies one can meet in Kiev, she also is an inexhaustible source of ideas and energy when it comes to innovation and venture activity. In a mere three years, she has transformed a Kiev event, IDCEE, into the international face of the East-European startup and venture scene. …
Earlier this week RocketBank, a Moscow-based banking application startup, announced that it received $2 million in funding from Runa Capital, a Moscow-based fund operating internationally. RocketBank’s application, currently available only on iOS, allows users to complete money transfers that necessitate no bank details of a recipient, simply an e-mail address or e-wallet number – which the …
Runa Capital injects $2 million in mobile banking startup with global ambitions Read More
Yesterday Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of Russia’s largest social network, Vkontakte.ru (VK.com), threatened to sue the company’s main shareholder, United Capital Partners (UCP), for defamation. The claim followed statements made by UCP partner Yuri Kachuro in an interview with “Zuckerberg Will Call,” a publication dedicated to the Russian startup scene. Among other complaints, Kachuro …
One of the major risks facing the Russian industry IT is a takeover of domestic companies by Western giants, stated a yet unpublished development strategy plan for the industry, as reported by the business daily Vedomosti. To minimize this risk, the Ministry of Communications, which produced the document, proposes to include “some” IT companies in …
Government considers protecting “strategic” IT companies from foreign acquisition Read More
Fastlane Ventures, Prostor Capital, and Runa Capital have shaken hands to combine two sites in the field of online health and medicine: VitaPortal, which has been funded so far by Fastlane, Prostor, and US business angel Esther Dyson, and Zdorovie Online, which is coming from Runa’s portfolio. Launched in 2011 as a medical news and …
Fastlane, Prostor and Runa merge assets to create online health and medicine leader Read More
InMyRoom.ru, a Moscow-based startup that promotes home decor items, has just raised half a million dollars. The startup was launched one year ago and allows Internet users to buy interior furnishing and accessories based on attractive photos. The startup’s valuation has not been disclosed, but “both parties are happy with it,” the startup’s founder Ivan …
Interior design startup InMyRoom.ru raises $500,000 to develop photo-driven e-commerce Read More
