Softline Venture Fund will invest up to 1 billion rubles in promising educational technology projects

Selected projects will be able to use the Softline group’s sales channels, receive synergy with the Softline Academy, as well as access to a database of corporate clients. The fund did not mention the maximum investment amount in a project, specifying that this will depend on the business and performance of the investment applicant.

Requirements for applicant companies:

• Availability of a finished product with proven value;
• content creation in the field of AI, information security;
• annual turnover of 50 million rubles;
• growth of financial indicators year after year;
• availability of platform solutions with a B2B or B2C subscription model;
• Guidance for the education of adults or those receiving secondary or complementary education.

Companies are evaluated based on innovation, growth potential and competitive advantage. The deadline to accept applications is June 2024.

In 2023, the educational technology direction took only eighth place in terms of investment volume, notes Elena Volotovskaya, director of Softline Venture Partners.

“That is why we decided to support the industry in 2024, because a high level of education is one of the development priorities of the state. Furthermore, we consider that the sector itself is promising for investment, its potential is far from being exhausted,” explained the head of the fund of intentions to support educational projects.

At the end of March, Softline Venture Partners invested 100 million rubles in a data protection solution from RebrandyCo. Findler collects information about the client’s digital assets on the Internet, including in the hidden segment.