GS Group participated in a discussion of the Russian venture capital market at the RVK conference

March 19, 2015, Andrew Bezrukov, Director for Strategic Marketing of GS Group, attended the IV Annual partner conference of OAO RVK. The GS Group holding company representative participated in the panel discussion “Corporate funds as an innovative development instrument”.

Participants in the panel discussion discussed the pros and cons of R&D corporate funds, best practices for organizing corporate venture funds and the features of cooperation between companies and banks. GS Group was invited by RVK as a major investor and active member of the innovation market. Since 2013, the holding company has been developing the GS Venture corporate venture fund with an investment focus on the high-tech field of microelectronics and consumer electronics, as well as the development of hybrid services that combine television and associated areas. Unlike many other investors, GS Venture provides comprehensive support, starting with investment of up to 300 million rubles in the project to the organization of production on the basis of the innovative cluster Technopolis GS, assistance in introducing finished products to the market, advertising and promotion.

The results of GS venture activities for 2014 include support for a promising Finnish startup Tellyo. The Fund invested 200 thousand euros into the development of a popular solution Share the Moment for sharing TV moments across social media by using a ‘second screen’. The investment is aimed at helping the young company enter the international market.

“Many representatives from the Russian investment community believe that a special model of the venture capital market is being created in our country which differs from western and eastern practices and where the share of state participation is less than 60%. In the next few years, this industry will become a blend of public and private financial instruments, among which corporate venture funds will be one of the key mechanisms for innovative development. GS Venture is ready to annually invest up to 1.5 billion rubles in specialized startups proposing the development of brand new technologies in telecommunications,” said Andrew Bezrukov, Director for Strategic Marketing.

The communication platform for members of the investment community of the IV Annual Partner Conference of OAO RVK was devoted to discussing the current state of the Russian venture market, results of 2014 and plans for the current year. The event was attended by representatives of institutions and development corporations, entrepreneurs operating in the technology sector, business angels and investors.