Russian venture fund Ru-Net has participated in the $33 million funding round of FreeCharge, a leading Indian mobile recharge platform, reported local tech publication Trak.in. Belgium-based Sofina and existing investor Sequoia Capital also took part in the deal.
The new round of funding will be used for marketing and building an advertising platform that will capture offline and online customer purchase behaviors and their brand preferences. This intelligence will come from users who recharge on the platform using various coupons and incentives provided.
Launched in 2010, FreeCharge received an undisclosed amount of seed funding in 2010 from Tandon group, Mumbai angels and Sequoia. In December 2011, the company secured $4 million Series A funding from Sequoia Capital, reports Trak.in.
Ru-Net is a major venture fund backed by Leonid Boguslavsky, a figure on the Russian and international high-tech scene. As many other funds with Russian backers or management, Ru-Net has become more active outside than inside Russia.
Russian money goes to Asia
Not only has the Russian fund made hundreds of millions USD available to US startups via a dedicated US branch (called RTP Ventures), Ru-Net has also shown particular interest in Asian markets over the last few years. In 2012, the Russian fund invested $17 million in two Indian e-commerce companies. That same year, Ru-Net also injected a few million dollars in a Turkish online jewelry retailer.
In 2011, Ru-Net invested heavily in Vietnam, taking part in a $60 million funding round of a new e-commerce company.
Other Russian funds have deployed activities in South-East Asia lately. Among them are SpinUp Partners and Ruvento, which have invested in Asian startup accelerators, and Dmitry Levit’s Digital Media Partners. DST, the giant global Internet fund headed by Yuri Milner, has also invested in a range of leading Chinese Internet companies.
California and Israel have remained the favorite foreign destinations for a range of other Russian investors.
- Update April 8, 2015
FreeCharge has been acquired by Indian e-commerce giant Snapdeal, reports TechCrunch. The companies are not disclosing a price, but the Economic Times previously pegged its valuation at $450 million.
