“On heart to heart” - a conversation with Igor Ryabenky



    In the framework of the new column “On heart to heart money” we will talk with investors, angels, venture capital fund managers about how their activities look from the inside, what is interesting in it and what potential entrepreneurs can expect when communicating.

    The first to agree with us was Igor Ryabenky , managing partner of the AltairVC venture fund , one of the most famous Russian- speaking investors around the world. He has been investing in IT projects since the nineties, today his fund has one of the most impressive portfolio of projects after the “sowing” stage.

    - Igor, let's start with the most acute question: how did you earn your first capital?

    In the 90s, I was engaged in the supply of computer components, we were one of the leaders in the OEM market. We started with the supply of computers of our own assembly (made in Taiwan under our trademark), then we switched to office equipment, then to household appliances, and so on. So by me, in general, the starting capital was earned.

    - “Venture investments” in Russia is a phrase of the last ten years at most. How did you work in the 90s?

    I was doing everything that the "venture investors" were doing, I just did not know what it was called.

    - So we are talking about the fact that this is 3F (Family-Friends-Fools)?

    No, no, no, I had it all differently.
    When I started to grow a group of companies, at some point it became clear to me that I did not have time to follow everything. Initially, the company was under my one-man management, then I broke it into “divisions”.

    The market was fast-growing, a lot of ideas came from everywhere - then I thought that I needed to take managers for each project and give them options.

    Actually, I started doing this - giving them the opportunity to become a co-owner of the project, thus giving the person the opportunity to motivate grow the project further. In the same way as in venture history, a certain number of projects were bent, but most of them grew well.

    This was already my second “earnings” - the teams that I took for growth worked with me very tightly, then less tightly, finally getting down to the freemen. That is, I did the same things without having “friends-family-fools” - we took the money we earned from the main business and invested it either in the project of the other guys, or took outside guys, giving them our idea - he became time side project.

    - Many years have passed since the beginning of your activity, many projects. Can you name a number?

    I can, in total, that is, large projects and small ones together - about 100 names.

    - Not bad. And are you a “super angel” (as Mr. Ryabenky is often called in the media) due to their number or the fact that there is some “administrative” staff to help you manage this whole cohort?

    Not certainly in that way. They began to call me a super angel when I started investing already as a fund, I would say that by that time my activity had turned into a “microfond” (editor's note: seed investment ). But, at the same time, I continue to be an angel.

    That is, the "super angel" in my understanding is a person who is already professionally engaged in investments. While I did them as an “angel”, I ran my main business and at the same time allowed myself outside investments.

    When I became a “super angel”, I began to devote all my time only to this process - working with startups. Yes, you are right to some extent here - the staff appeared, they began to call me “super-angel”, but when the “microfund” took shape - this staff became even more.

    I myself do not call myself a “super angel”, it is the prerogative of the press. I believe that I am the manager of the seed investment fund. Call me whatever you want - I don't mind. Last year I received two prizes in Russia: one as an angel investor, and the second as a fund.

    - Igor, has it become easier to work with teams in the Russian market after all these years have passed? It is clear that we do not have many financial instruments, but, in my opinion, the level of awareness has risen. What do you think about it?

    Work has become much easier, the level has risen very much. We have greatly contributed to this - by introducing a “not redneck”, but a civilized investment model. Over the past 5 years, the situation has changed a lot.

    In addition, there was a mass of press writing about it. Not the last role is played by your information resources, in particular, Habr. So literacy has risen significantly.

    On the other hand, there are enough administrative and legal barriers.

    - Has the situation changed in terms of profitability?

    Profitability depends on the project and does not depend on the market.

    - That is, all the same, there are highly profitable “unicorns” and there are those who die before they reach the first user?

    And there is luck too. 44 projects of one team may fail, and the 45th will fire. Of course, “if you are lucky, the cock will blow it”, that is, projects depend on many factors and, unfortunately, even the coolest investor, giving his money to the team, can not predict anything. There is a game of probability.

    - Ambitious advice for those who are looking for investment?

    Do not look for investment for the sake of investment, but projects for the project. If you really “found” your own niche and think that this is a project for which you are ready to ditch the next 5-7-10 years of life and spend a lot of energy on striving for success - you can take the money. If not, refrain. Even if you raise money, you can “trick” people, and nobody needs it.

    On the other hand, if you really believe strongly, then you can take investments and develop success.

    - And what can you advise other investors? Say in Russia.

    Or invest professionally - spending time studying the market, studying the nuances and models, including boring legal and financial details. Or invest with someone: funds, venues, clubs.

    - Igor, what is the geography of your investments?

    The penultimate, previous, fund was aimed at Russia and it represents more than 70% of it. The latter fund was aimed at Israel and about half of it from Israel, 40% from the United States, and the remainder from Russia.

    - Igor, what projects are you most proud of? Are there anyone for whom the “soul hurts” in a good way?

    Of the Russian projects over the past 5 years, these are LinguaLeo and Profi.ru . Despite the various things happening, I am proud of these companies.

    There are a number of projects that deserve special attention: CheckOut, GetIntent, CarPrice. All the others, of course, are just as good. In the last fund, more than 30% of projects show their own “hockey sticks" ( Ed. Note: Hockey Stick Curve ), which causes extremely positive emotions.

    - If I understood everything correctly about you, then without positive emotions you would not have been doing this, right?

    Absolutely. I often use the phrase "over the last 5 years" because it was before this that I came out of all my own, "old", assets. For some time I thought about what I would do - there were thoughts about teaching. After a short time, I started to invest in a new way, because the head of Profi.ru was my former subordinate, whom I employed as a student, in my company. I helped him, then - invested well and away we go.

    - A true success story. Igor, and probably the last question. Today, “syndicates” are popular among individual investors, largely thanks to AngelList, which allows such transactions to be carried out completely electronically in the United States and Great Britain. Do you take part in them?

    There is such a need and we, in fact, are doing a lot of syndicated deals. Because, firstly, we are not a very large fund, and deals are sometimes huge. We started with a network of partnerships with other investors whom we call syndicated deals. Last year, we made ten times more syndicated transactions than individual ones.

    That is, syndicates are becoming the new market standard?

    I don’t think, it seems to me that this is our know-how in particular in Russia. The second point - we created the "Angel Club". I am somewhat skeptical of AngelList, although there are some really cool guys there too. Other sites are being created, but since I got into this topic well, I understand that many people there will be unhappy because they get “no” rights, nobody even thinks about them. Now there are almost no A-rounds, no exits, but when they begin I think that many will see that they are left with nothing. I talked, including with AngelList, and there I haven’t made any transactions there yet, although I periodically look at such an opportunity. And in our club we have already done enough, the main paradigm, and the next one is that people who invest with us get the same rights with us. And only in those projects in which we "go".

    - It turns out that in a sense, you share your own reputation with them

    It turns out that yes. There is a project, we say that we are ready to put 300 thousand on the table. A project, say, needs 600, 700 or a million. We call our investors and say: “Do you want to report?” It happens in a different way: we found a project, we say: “300 thousand angel investments,” and in the end they put only 100 thousand. Well, it happened - they didn’t recognize it. We put an extra 200 thousand, a good project.

    Just to make it clear - if we are looking for co-investors for the project, this means that we are ready to provide the full amount on our own.

    - If you agreed that the transaction will be - the transaction will be

    Absolutely. If I told the guys (and I don’t always say this): “I like it, I will give the amount, the total figure will be this. If they give co-investors - it will be so, if they give other funds - so. If no one gives, I will invest alone. ”

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