European Investors Fuel Russian Expansion of Tascom

Files under: News
Posted by: Yakov @ 16:11 [19. 02. 08]

When the Russian wireless broadband operator Enforta raised $40 million from Bessemer Venture Partners and the others, its Moscow-based competitor Tascom announced Series B funding of $15 million to expand into Russian regions. The round was led by Quadriga Capital Russia. The existing Tascom’s investors Norum and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) also participated in the round.

Tascom started as a paging operator in 1996. Norum and the EBRD previously invested about $5 million in Tascom in 2004. The Russian WiFi Internet access market was valued at some $80 million in 2007.

Quadriga Capital Russia, which is a sister company of Quadriga Capital of Germany, manages a $136 million Quadriga Capital Russia Private Equity Fund II for direct investments into mid-sized Russian businesses. The company has Russian offices in St. Petersburg, Moscow, and Nizhni Novgorod. The investors into the fund include the EBRD, IFC, 3i, Deutsche Entwicklungs- und Investitionsgesellschaft, Sal. Oppenheim Bank, Bank Gutmann Aktiengesellschaft, and Evli Bank.

In October 2005, Quadriga together with Intel Capital invested in Akella, a leading Russian publisher and distributor of computer and console games.

Norum is currently raising a EUR 150 million Norum Russia Fund III of which the first closing of EUR 56 million was announced last November. The fund’s investors include the EBRD, IFC, FMO, DnB NOR Bank, SITRA, and Innovation Norway.

Tags: