The Ozon group yesterday announced revenue growth of 84% for last year in dollar value, reaching $302.5 million and outperforming the Russian online retail market’s estimated 25% rise to some $10 billion. Particularly notable was the 3.5-fold growth of Ozon Travel, the branch specializing in air and train tickets and hotel bookings. Established in 2009, …
In a new bid to put a lid on uncensored Internet exchanges, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), the post-Soviet successor of the KGB, has called for a crackdown on the “detrimental activity” of Western intelligence services in cyberspace. Speaking last week in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, at an interregional anti-terrorist panel of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), …
FSB seeks to drive Western intelligence out of blogosphere Read More
The lack of qualified human resources appears to be the most difficult issue faced by the fast growing e-commerce industry in Russia, says a report by East-West Digital News. All key positions are affected, from general managers and project managers, to e-marketing specialists to IT and fulfillment teams. The shortage of skilled employees on the …
Report: Russian e-commerce severely hampered by HR shortages Read More
PayPal has held discussions with the Russian Post to prepare its entry on the local market, Russian business daily Kommersant reported earlier this week. Beyond the launch of the international virtual currency on the Russian market, a co-branded payment card has been discussed, which could be replenished from PayPal accounts and used to settle purchases, to withdraw cash …
The Russian venture capital scene, which counted less than two dozen active funds just two years ago, is continuing its impressive growth. Its newest player, an early stage venture fund named Frontier Ventures, has just been announced by its founder, the Russian entrepreneur and investor Dmitry Alimov. The fund’s target of $50 million has already been …
New $50 million fund targets early stage B2C Internet startups Read More
Two years after the Groupon fever hit Russia in March 2010, Leonid Gluzman, the founder of daily deal site aggregator Zina.ru, recalls the history of this thriving industry and shares its key figures and trends for the future. This interview is an excerpt from an in-depth research paper on Russian e-commerce that will be released next …
A leading player on Russia’s young but flourishing market of online accounting services, Moe Delo (pronounced ‘Moyo Dyelo’) announced last week it raised $4 million from Klever Internet Investments. The valuation of the company was not disclosed, but Moe Delo’s founders Sergey Panov and Maxim Yaremko kept a controlling stake, according to the press release.
Taking advantage of the growing demand for online travel services, Bravofly, the European online travel agency that specializes in selling low cost flights, seems to have succeeded in its entry on the Russian market. Already operating in a dozen Western countries, from Italy to Germany to the United States, the agregator of low cost air ticket …
Bravofly claims first successes in Russia “beyond expectations” Read More
Digital Sky Technologies, a Russian investment fund whose global web portfolio includes Airbnb, Facebook, Groupon, Spotify, Twitter, Zalando and Zynga, is seeking $1 billion for a new technology fund, Bloomberg reported yesterday, citing an investor presentation it has obtained. The new fund, DST Global III, will focus on late-stage global Internet companies with a valuation …
Oktogo.ru, a leading Russian online hotel booking and travel company, officially confirmed yesterday that it has secured a $10 million round of financing. The news was leaked for the first time last month, but Oktogo’s press release has provided details on the operation. VTB Capital, the investment arm of the Russian state controlled financial group VTB …
Western funds Mangrove and Ventech take part in Oktogo.ru’s $10 million round Read More
The shareholders of KupiVip.ru, Russia’s leading fashion flash sales site, intend to invest no less than $50 million in Shoptime.ru, an online fashion items and accessories retailer that launched in test mode earlier this year. In contrast to the discounted flash sales model used by KupiVip.ru, this new site offers a permanent assortment of new …
KupiVip.ru shareholders to invest $50 million in new online fashion retailer Read More
Facebook’s 2nd annual Hacker Cup competition, held at the company’s headquarters in Menlo Park, California, witnessed 25 of the world’s best hackers gather for an intense competition. Roman Andreev of Russia took top prize by correctly completing a problem in 1 hour and 4 minutes, one minute ahead of the second place winner. Andreev received …
Russia’s Roman Andreev wins first place and $5,000 in Facebook’s Hackers Cup Read More
