Young and early

Competition for those willing to take risks

Today we begin accepting applications for participation in the competition of the Russian Venture Company (RVC) to select management companies that, together with it, will create venture funds. 9 billion rubles are at stake. from the federal budget. This is the second such competition. At the first competition, the amount of support from the RVC budget amounted to 4 billion rubles. and three winners were selected from 13 applicants. At this competition, the organizers are already counting on a dozen winners. The results of the competition are scheduled to be announced at the end of May.

The topic of venture investing, that is, investing in young innovative companies, should become one of the most popular this year. In the second half of April, the Presidium of the State Council will be held, dedicated to the topic of innovation development. In the country's long-term development strategy until 2020, which initially provided for several different economic scenarios, there is now only one left - innovative. The share of high-tech sectors in the economy should double by 2020, from the current 10 to 18-20%. Thus, venture investment becomes one of the instruments of public policy.

Currently, there is virtually no venture investment system in the country, Deputy Minister of Economic Development Anna Popova told reporters. First of all, it is necessary to quickly formulate a regulatory framework so that venture funds are created in the form familiar to Western investors, she explained. The second problem is typical for any business. These are difficulties with access to financial resources. Another barrier is related to the underdevelopment of infrastructure - a weak information environment, lack of specialized publications and special training programs. However, according to Ivan Oskolkov, director of the corporate governance department of the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, it would be nice to provide tax benefits. All over the world, he said, the main demand is created by institutional investors, but in Russia there are no incentives for consolidation.

This fall, it is planned to hold another competition, but for projects at an even earlier, so-called seed stage of development. “These are projects at a stage when there is nothing yet, not even a business plan,” Popova explained. Currently operating closed mutual funds can only work with an existing business, even a very beginner one. A new mechanism suitable for the “seed stage” will be developed over the summer. Perhaps, RVC General Director Alexey Korobov suggests, a simple partnership agreement will be used or a special form will be created.

The requirements for management companies have been clarified compared to the previous competition. Only licensed management companies will be able to take part in the competition. But at the same time, the number of documents is limited to one memorandum with rules for filling out and three formal certificates. However, it's not just about certificates.

It should be recalled that one of the winners of the first competition was involved in a scandal. The winners were the management companies VTB Asset Management, Bioprocess Capital Partners and Finance Trust CJSC, which received 3.9 billion rubles for management. government funds owned by RVC, and in return they pledged to attract more than 8 billion rubles to venture funds. However, at the end of last year, the head of Fintrust, Oleg Shvartsman, gave a scandalous interview about raider activities ordered by government officials and was removed from cooperation with RVC in all four regions, where he won a competition to manage ventures.

Vera SITNINA