News

Tomsk university and US firm to open joint scientific center in Siberia

2,847 Comments / Education & training, Hardware & Electronics, International, News, R&D, Regions & cities, Tomsk / By

The Tomsk University of Control Systems and Radio Electronics (TUSUR) and Keysight Technologies, a US company, have plans to open Siberia’s first scientific and educational center in Tomsk in early 2015, portal Globalsib.com reported. TUSUR is reported to have already launched this past fall its new master’s degree program focused on the automation of the …

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Young entrepreneurs open business incubator in Ufa, industry veteran launches “anti-accelerator” in Moscow

2,647 Comments / Bashkortostan, Incubators & technoparks, News, Regions & cities, Startups / By

On December 1, Ufa, the capital city of Bashkortostan in the Southern Urals, saw the opening of new business incubator Smart Park, the local media reported. The space was created by the young entrepreneurs of the capital for actively minded people that are promoting new ideas and developing long-term projects. Smart Park includes a co-working …

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Wakie, the social alarm clock that lets you wake up strangers, finally arrives on iOS

231 Comments / International, Mobile content, Mobile-Telecom-Satellites, News, Startups / By

– “Hey there, I’m just calling to wake you up,” I said a little awkwardly. – “Thanks. Where are you from?” replied a female voice with a thick Irish accent. – “The UK. You’re from Ireland, right?” – “How could you tell?” she said wryly. – “The flag at the top of the screen.” It took 9 months to be …

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Yandex acquires e-commerce recommendation service, Runa Capital celebrates first Russian exit

5 Comments / Finance, Internet, M&A, News, Search engines & SEO, Software / By

Yandex, the Russian search giant, has acquired a browser application developed by Metabar, a portfolio company of Runa Capital. The financial details of the deal have not been disclosed, but Runa reported that it “provided a multiple return on investment.” Christened “Sovetnik” (Russian for “advisor”), this browser extension helps users find the best offer for …

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Web server publisher Nginx raises $20 million from US fund NEA

217 Comments / Finance, International, Internet, IT services, News, Venture / Private equity / By

Nginx (pronounced “engine-x”), a US-based open source web server publisher with Russian origins, has secured $20 million in a Series B1 round of financing from New Enterprise Associates (NEA). German-American fund e.ventures, Moscow-based Runa Capital, Index Ventures and Nginx CEO Gus Robertson also took part in the round, the company announced. Funding will be used for …

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Phenomen Ventures takes part in €13.5 million funding round for German home-cleaning marketplace Helpling

1,135 Comments / Finance, International, Internet, News, Online classifieds, Startups, Venture / Private equity / By

Phenomen Ventures, a $300 million international venture fund launched last year by Russian businessman Dmitry Falkovich, has invested in Helpling, the online marketplace for household cleaners backed by Germany’s Rocket Internet. The deal is part of a Series A round of 13.5 million euros ($16.8 million), which has also involved Mangrove Capital, Point Nine Capital …

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International online recruitment service Zartis launches in Russia

International, Internet, Labor & HR issues, News, Online classifieds / By

Last month international online recruitment service Zartis.com announced the launch of its platform in Moscow. Zartis provides employers with access to pre-screened IT professionals in an online marketplace making it quicker and cheaper for companies to hire tech talent. The service, which started in Ireland, is available in Dublin, London, Berlin and now Moscow – …

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Igor Ryabenkiy’s Altair fund attracts new partners to invest more in international startups

75 Comments / Finance, International, News, Startups, Venture / Private equity / By

Russian-Austrian startup investor Igor Ryabenkiy is attracting partners to his investment fund, Altair Capital Management, aiming to raise $20 million before the end of this year Two figures from the Russian venture scene, Igor Matsanyuk and Mikhail Vinchel, have already brought in a part of the funding via their own investment vehicles. Other LPs are expected …

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Life.SREDA invests in mobile bank Rocketbank

Banking technologies, Finance, Mobile commerce, Mobile content, Mobile-Telecom-Satellites, News, Payment & banking technologies, Startups, Venture / Private equity / By

Last week Life.SREDA, the venture arm of Russian finance group Life, announced its investment in mobile bank Rocketbank. The amount of the transaction has not been disclosed, but an unnamed source close to the deal told Russian tech blog Firrma.ru that the fund’s stake in Rocketbank does not exceed 10%. Life, which is made up of seven commercial banks across Russia, …

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Russia’s SBT Venture Capital invests $5 million in Southeast Asian credit company

74 Comments / Banking technologies, Finance, International, News, Payment & banking technologies, Payments, Venture / Private equity / By

SBT Venture Capital, the venture arm of Russia’s national savings bank Sberbank, has invested $5 million in fintech service Advanced Merchant Payments (AMP). AMP’s platform allows banks to offer unsecured short-term loans to small businesses, using data analysis to decide whether to offer loans to businesses without a credit history. It was founded in 2009 …

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