Last month, according to media reports, Russian DNA testing company Genotek raised $4 million in a funding round led by Yandex. No information was disclosed about the other investors or the terms of the deal, and Genotek did not answer EWDN’s media inquiries.
The company, founded in 2010, says it partners with “leadings Russian and European research institutes in the field of genetics and medicine,” and claims “thousands of customers from 16 countries.”
Not all these customers seem satisfied by the company’s service, however, if judging by online reviews.
The fresh funding will be used to develop the company’s R&D and commercial activities. Ilynisky told the Russian media that Genotek and Yandex already work together to improve delivery, develop data processing algorithms and automate communication with customers.
“There is also a common interest in such other areas as telemedicine services and education,” he was quoted as saying.
Yandex, which invested in doctor-on-call service DOC+ in 2018, has its own e-health platform, ‘Yandex.Zdorovye.’
Genotek’s previous rounds of financing reportedly involved:
- Anton Starsky’s Rustars Ventures ($500,000 in 2013);
- Alexander Voloshin, former head of Russia’s presidential administration of Vladimir Putin, and Maxim Basov, CEO and co-owner of the Rusagro holding ($2 million round in 2016)
- Russian pharmaceutical major Pharmstandard ($1 million in 2017).
According to RBC, Genotek’s co-founders founders Valery Ilyinsky and Artem Yelmuratov still control the company after the latest round with Yandex.
