In a strong symbol of the crash of Russia’s technology sector, Miro, a US-based decacorn created in Russia eleven years ago, announced last week it was closing its office and stopping sales in its native country. “We are devastated by the escalating war and human tragedy in Ukraine. We continue to call for a swift end …
Yandex, the Russian online search giant — also running a variety of other digital services — is exploring different “strategic options, including disvestment, for its news aggregation service and infotainment platform Zen.” The company stated Friday it intended to “focus on developing its other technology-related businesses and products (including search, advertising, self-driving and cloud) and transactional services (including ride-hailing, e-commerce, …
Caught between Russia’s censorship and West’s sanctions, Yandex seeks to sell assets Read More
It’s been two days since Roskomnadzor blocked Instagram in Russia. The agency, which is in charge of telecommunications control and censorship, believes that the social network is filled with “calls to commit violent actions against Russian citizens and military personnel.” Russia’s Attorney General has called for Meta, Instagram’s parent company, to be blacklisted as an “extremist organization.” …
The Russian App Store has lost 6,982 mobile apps since the start of the Ukraine invasion, as numerous companies have now pulled their apps and games from Apple’s iPhone and iPad App Stores in the country, according to data shared with TechCrunch by app intelligence firm Sensor Tower. To date, those apps had been downloaded around …
East-West Digital News is happy to bring to its readers this business-as-usual, non war-related story. As industry publication RB.RU just reported, a Russian garbage recycling technology startup called Ubirator raised 170 million rubles (some $2.25 million at the pre-war exchange rate). Founded in 2018 by Nikita Nikishkin and Alexey Khatskevich, two MIPT (PhysTech) graduates, Ubirator …
Russian startup raises millions to revolutionize garbage collection Read More
Even as Russian authorities are taking unprecedented measures to silence opposition or even free expression, an “international VC and startup petition against the bloodshed in Ukraine” started circulating in the Russian and Belarusian tech business community. Prominent tech investors from or connected with these countries signed the petition just hours after its release. Other signatories …
The head of Russia’s top technology firm Yandex quit late Tuesday after being slapped with EU sanctions in response to Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Brussels hit Yandex executive director and deputy CEO Tigran Khudaverdyan with an asset freeze and travel ban earlier in the day, citing the firm’s role in “hiding information” from the Russian …
Yandex top executive quits after surprise EU sanctions Read More
Global investors are scooping up stakes in cryptocurrency funds and companies, as they seek exposure to a sector many believe could withstand the fallout from the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Research firm Fundstrat, in its latest note to clients, said venture capital (VC) buyers invested around $4 billion in the crypto space in the last three weeks …
Investors turn to crypto funds, companies as Russia-Ukraine crisis escalates Read More
Today the Russian authorities blocked access to Instagram in the country after they accused its parent company Meta of allowing hate speech against Russians, including the military, on its platforms. Instagram now appears on a list of “restricted” online resources published by the authorities. Earlier this month Roskomnadzor, the Internet and telecom regulator, already blocked access to …
Instagram blocked in Russia, hitting crowds of individual entrepreneurs Read More
After Russian entrepreneurs asserted themselves last year as chief disruptors in the global food delivery industry — fulfilling orders in around 15 minutes in a variety of Western cities — some of them are now falling as collateral victims of Putin’s war on Ukraine. In early March Buyk — a fresh food delivery service with sizeable operations in New York and Chicago — abruptly …
Financial services firms including those in the cryptoasset sector were warned by Britain’s regulatory bodies on Friday that they were expected to ensure sanctions imposed against entities and individuals in Russia and Belarus were complied with. “We are working closely with partners in government and law enforcement both here and abroad, including regulatory authorities, to …
Cryptoasset sector told by UK regulators to comply with Russian sanctions Read More
Meta’s properties — including Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp — are likely to cease their activities completely in Russia as the US social media company is now facing a criminal investigation over calls for violence targeting the Russian invaders of Ukraine. “A criminal case has been initiated (…) in connection with illegal calls for murder and …
