Intel Capital believes on-the-ground presence and long-term commitment is key to successful investments
MOSCOW, July 5, 2013 – Intel Capital, Intel Corporation’s global investment and M&A organization, today celebrated 10 years of investing in Russia and CIS. Intel Capital entered Russia in 2003 with an investment in internet company Ru-Net/Yandex and since then has invested in 15 companies across the region.
Speaking at an Intel Capital event to mark the occasion, Arvind Sodhani, President of Intel Capital and Intel Executive Vice President, detailed Intel Capital’s history and success in the region: “As one of the first international venture capital investors in the country, we have invested in and worked alongside the strong local engineering talent behind many of the region’s most exciting technology innovations. In turn, these companies have benefitted from the unique global perspective Intel Capital provides entrepreneurs along with the resources, network and expertise to help them grow their businesses.”
“We are delighted to mark this milestone in our investment activity,” added Marcin Hejka, Managing Director Intel Capital Eastern Europe, Middle East, Africa and Russia/CIS, “We first came to Russia after identifying the huge technology talent and the opportunity for local innovations to be globally successful. The past 10 years have confirmed Russia has talent that rivals or exceeds many mature markets, while maintaining the characteristics of high growth emerging market – a combination that is a perfect environment for innovative investors like Intel Capital.”
Intel Capital is one of the most established and successful venture capital firms in the world, often entering markets before others. In Russia and CIS, Intel Capital’s Moscow-based team, currently run by investment directors Igor Taber and Maxim Krasnykh, has led investment rounds in consumer and enterprise focused companies including most recently:
- AlterGeo, a geo-location social network in Russia.
- DeNovo, an enterprise class data center and cloud provider in Ukraine.
- Eruditor (USD$4 million), a Moscow-based provider of online marketplaces for freelancers and businesses.
- Sapato, an ecommerce retailer specializing in footwear that was acquired by Ozon, the largest ecommerce company in Russia. Intel Capital remains invested in Ozon.
- Rock Flow Dynamics (USD$2 million), a developer of high performance modeling software for dynamic simulations of hydrocarbon underground reservoirs.
In addition to leading the above investments, Intel Capital also participated in a $45m investment round in KupiVIP Holding, one of the largest fashion ecommerce websites in Russia, and a round in Speaktoit, a natural language processing company.
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About Intel Capital
Intel Capital, Intel's global investment and M&A organization, makes equity investments in innovative technology start-ups and companies worldwide. Intel Capital invests in a broad range of companies offering hardware, software, and services targeting enterprise, mobility, health, consumer Internet, digital media and semiconductor manufacturing. Since 1991, Intel Capital has invested more than US$10.8 billion in over 1,284 companies in 54 countries. In that timeframe, 202 portfolio companies have gone public on various exchanges around the world and 320 were acquired or participated in a merger. In 2012, Intel Capital invested US$352 million in 150 investments with approximately 57 percent of funds invested outside North America. For more information on Intel Capital and its differentiated advantages, visit www.intelcapital.com or follow @Intelcapital.