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| RVC Fund of Funds | |
|---|---|
| Name | RVC Fund of Funds |
| Type | Sovereign venture fund |
| Founded | 2011 |
| Headquarters | Moscow |
| Key people | Anatoly Chubais; Kirill Dmitriev; Vladimir Putin |
| Assets | ~US$1.2 billion (approx.) |
| Parent | Russian Venture Company |
RVC Fund of Funds is a Russian state-backed investment vehicle created to channel public capital into early-stage and growth-stage technology ventures through third-party venture funds. It was established to support innovation ecosystems by co-investing in private fund managers and to link state policy with private capital formation across industry clusters.
The RVC Fund of Funds operates as a fund-of-funds sponsored by the Russian Venture Company and aligned with strategic initiatives associated with the Government of Russia, the Ministry of Economic Development (Russia), and national innovation platforms connected to institutions such as Skolkovo Innovation Center, Rosnano, and Sberbank. Its mandate intersects with policy frameworks promoted at events like the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum and with programs influenced by actors including Vladimir Putin, Dmitry Medvedev, and figures from the Russian technocratic elite such as Anatoly Chubais and Kirill Dmitriev. The vehicle aims to bolster linkages between Russian sovereign investment entities and international funds run by managers with track records in markets influenced by London Stock Exchange, NASDAQ, and regional hubs like Hong Kong and Dubai.
RVC Fund of Funds was formed within a milieu shaped by post-2008 financial strategies that also gave rise to entities like Rosneft, Gazprombank, and VEB.RF. Its inception drew on precedents from sovereign fund models including the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Temasek Holdings, and the Norwegian Ministry of Finance's Government Pension Fund Global approaches to long-term capital allocation. Creation involved negotiation among Russian federal bodies, regional development agencies such as Skolkovo Foundation, and international advisers with ties to Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and boutique venture investors. The timeline overlaps with high-profile policy initiatives such as the National Technology Initiative and economic responses to sanctions following events like the 2014 Crimean crisis.
The fund pursues a diversified allocation across venture capital fund managers targeting sectors with national strategic importance, including information technology linked to Yandex, biotechnology with ties to institutions like Sechenov University, deeptech connected to Moscow State University, and industrial digitalization aligned with players like Rosatom and Rostec. It co-invests with private firms and foreign limited partners resembling those that participate in funds associated with Accel Partners, Sequoia Capital, Index Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, and regionals akin to DST Global. Objectives include catalyzing follow-on private investment, increasing exits through public listings on exchanges such as Moscow Exchange, London Stock Exchange, and NASDAQ, and fostering commercialization channels between universities like Bauman Moscow State Technical University and corporate partners including Rostelecom.
Governance structures draw on models used by institutions such as Temasek Holdings and Carlyle Group with a board comprising representatives from the Ministry of Finance (Russia), sovereign stakeholders, and independent industry experts. Senior management has included figures with prior roles at organizations like Gazprombank, VTB Capital, and multinationals such as ABB Group and Siemens. Advisory connections have spanned academic leaders from Moscow State Institute of International Relations and corporate governance consultants who have advised transactions involving Deutsche Bank and HSBC.
The fund’s allocations have been deployed across multiple underlying venture funds that have backed companies in consumer internet, enterprise software, fintech, healthtech, and advanced manufacturing. Through fund managers, it has indirect exposure to startups that have been linked in media to firms like Yandex, Ozon, Wildberries, Mail.ru Group, Tinkoff Bank, and biotech projects with associations to Gamaleya Research Institute. Co-investments and follow-on financings mirror participation patterns seen in funds that backed companies such as Delivery Hero, Spotify, Telegram (software)-related ventures, and industrial startups reminiscent of those accelerated by Skolkovo Foundation incubators.
Reported asset under management figures place the fund in the low billions of dollars, comparable to targeted allocations by national innovation funds in countries with similar sovereign initiatives. Metrics emphasized by managers include internal rate of return (IRR), multiple on invested capital (MOIC), and portfolio company valuations at exit events such as listings on the Moscow Exchange or trade sales to corporations like Sberbank, Rosneft, and international strategic buyers including Siemens or GE. Performance assessments have been discussed in forums with participation from entities like World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and investment banks such as Rothschild & Co.
Critics have argued that state-linked investment vehicles can face conflicts resembling debates around Sberbank’s market role, sanction-related constraints following actions connected to 2014 Crimean crisis and 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, and governance tensions seen in cases involving Rosneft leadership. Observers from think tanks, academic centers such as Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and Chatham House, and financial media outlets have raised concerns about political influence, transparency, and talent attraction compared with peers like Sequoia Capital and Andreessen Horowitz. Allegations of politicized allocation echo controversies that have affected other state-backed funds globally, including scrutiny similar to that experienced by Qatar Investment Authority and China Investment Corporation.
Category:Venture capital funds Category:Investment companies of Russia