The SME Forum

Every Startup Must Dream of Becoming a Unicorn

05 Jun , 12:15–13:45
Russian Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Forum: Growth
Practicum
pavilion G, conference hall G6

One of the priority areas of support by the Russian government is taking technology companies to IPO. In 2023–2024, there has already been an active return of issuers to the Russian IPO market: in 2023, shares of eight Russian companies were placed on the Moscow Exchange; the Russian market has not seen such a number of new issuers in one calendar year for more than 10 years. The volume of funds raised through IPOs in 2023 totalled more than RUB 40 billion. In 2024, the number of new placements may already be in the double digits, and underwriting companies expect the volume of capital raised in the course of initial public offerings to show further growth. What is the current state of the venture capital market? What investment opportunities exist today? Where should startups begin their IPO journey? What should one pay attention to? What pitfalls may be encountered along the way?

Moderator
Elena Volotovskaya, Managing Director, Softline Venture Partners

Panellists
Kirill Varlamov, Head, Internet Initiatives Development Fund (IIDF)
Valeria Vorobieva, Director of the Department of Strategic Development and Innovation, Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation
Pavel Gudkov, Deputy Chairman of the Board for Financial Support and Technological Expertise, Skolkovo Foundation
Artem Zheleznov, Managing Director for Strategic and International Presence, Moscow Exchange
Andrey Zhizhin, Innovation Promotion Foundation
Yury Zubov, Head, Federal Service for Intellectual Property (Rospatent)
Artur Martirosov, Venture Partner, Voskhod Venture Capital

Front row participants
Rustam Ainetdinov, Executive Director, Skyeng
Yaroslav Aleynik, General Director, Omega
Alexey Nazarov, Vice President – Director of Non-Banking Services Development, Promsvyazbank
Alexey Palamarchuk, General Director, NtechLab
Юлия Поволоцкая, Deputy General Director, Moscow Innovation Cluster Foundation
Oleg Teplov, Chief Executive Officer, Moscow Venture Fund
Irina Tsaava, Director of Capital Markets Department, Sinara Investment Bank
Vyacheslav Shulenin, General Director, Moscow Center for Healthcare Innovations

Broadcast