Passenger airline operator S7 Airlines plans to launch a $50m venture capital fund by the end of 2018 to make investments aligned with its strategic and profit-led objectives, Vedomosti has reported.
S7 Airlines is the customer-facing brand for what is officially known as Siberia Airlines, one of the biggest air carriers in Russia by market share, which was formed through the mass privatisation of Russia’s formerly communist economy in the early 1990s.
The firm reportedly began participating in corporate venturing in 2017 and has since put up approximately $10m to back emerging digital and industrial technologies. The vehicle will likely be registered overseas to avoid triggering international restrictions on Russian deal making.
S7 has mainly invested in Western Europe, the US, India and China to date, with Russia accounting for about 12% of its corporate venturing portfolio according to Vedomosti.
The unit’s portfolio companies include on-demand airport transfer booking service GetTransfer.com, which was reportedly founded by a Russian entrepreneur but registered in Hong Kong.