Vaizra Investments, the fund belonging to VKontakte founders Lev Leviev and Vyacheslav Mirilashvili, has invested in startups Moovit and Boxed. Moovit is an Israeli app which helps users to plan journeys on public transport, and Boxed is a US app for wholesale buyers. Moovit monitors levels of traffic and the schedules of different forms of public transport in …
Rostelecom, Russia’s national telecom operator, announced yesterday the acquisition of a majority stake in SafeData (LLC Data Storage Centre), a leading operator of commercial data centers, traffic exchange services and content delivery. In a first stage, Rostelecom will acquire a 5.4% stake in LLC Data Storage Centre for 104.2 million rubles (approximately $1.6 million at …
Rostelecom to acquire major data center and Internet infrastructure company Read More »
Whenever you spot someone on the Moscow metro taking a photo with their mobile phone, chances are you have just witnessed a combination of two things that are widely popular in the Russian capital. Transporting an unparalleled 9 million weekday commuters on its 12 lines, Moscow’s metro boasts a number of stations that wouldn’t look out of place as side wings of the Palace of Versailles. Pass …
Instagram map shows Moscow’s metro as passengers see it Read More »
Earlier this week Yandex, the Russian search giant, announced that its School of Data Analysis (YSDA) will take part in CERN’s Large Hadron Collider beauty (LHCb) experiment. The project, which is one of four large particle detector experiments at the Large Hadron Collider, collects data to study the interactions of heavy particles, called b-hadrons. As a …
Yandex School of Data Analysis joins CERN experiment Read More »
MasterCard has agreed to transfer card processing inside Russia to the National System of Payment Cards (NSPC) while Visa is still discussing the matter with the authorities, Interfax.ru reported, citing the Central Bank’s press service. MasterCard’s move will not affect cardholders, Interfax quoted a MasterCard representative as saying. The company previously used its own processing system, which is located …
MasterCard reaches agreement with national payment system; Visa may follow Read More »
GeoCV, a startup which is developing a mobile app for creating 3D-models of interiors using mobile sensors, has received $100k investment from Starta Capital and the Moscow Seed Fund. Starta Capital provided a third of the funding, with the rest coming from the Moscow Seed Fund. GeoCV will also receive a further $50k from Starta Capital in the …
3D mobile app startup developer GeoCV closes seed-stage round Read More »
CTC Media, a major Russian media company, yesterday announced the acquisition of a majority stake in CarambaTV, a producer of digital and transmedia content. CTC Media acquired a 51% stake for 148 million rubles (approximately $2.2 million at the current exchange rate). The transaction included the Carambatv.ru and +100500 websites, which together attract over 2 million unique visitors each …
CTC Media acquires online video content provider CarambaTV Read More »
The Russian telecommunications regulator Roskomnadzor has blocked access to five bitcoin-related websites because the cryptocurrency “contributes to the growth of the shadow economy.” The sites include Bitcoin.org, a primary community resource for the cryptocurrency that’s run by the Bitcoin Foundation, the Bitcoin.it community wiki, the Russian-language BTCsec.com security site, the London-incorporated Indacoin exchange, and Russian bitcoin community site Coinspot.ru — although the …
Russia blocks bitcoin websites over “shadow economy” fears Read More »
Last week Croice, whose mobile app allows you to create photo stories with a background audio, announced its first round of financing with $500,000 brought in by venture fund Imperious Group. Launched earlier this year by Russian entrepreneur Vadim Zhernov, the St. Petersburg-based startup presents its app as “a new media format.” The photo stories, named …
Croice secures $500,000 from Imperious Group to develop “new format of photo stories” Read More »
Russia’s Ministry of Economic Development has reacted negatively to the bill to ban cash equivalents, including electronic money, such as bitcoins. It said the proposed ban could hit major telecom operators, retailers and banks hard. The Ministry of Finance has developed a draft law on the introduction of responsibility for handling cash equivalents after President …
Yes to bitcoin! Russian ministry says quasi-money ban may endanger banks, retailers Read More »