More opportunities in Russia for Singapore start-ups as Moscow added to cities under Global Innovation Alliance

Singapore start-ups and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) will have more support in accessing the Russian market after Moscow was added to the Global Innovation Alliance (GIA) network, Enterprise Singapore (ESG) said.

Russian start-ups and SMEs, meanwhile, will be able to use Singapore as a springboard to explore opportunities in Southeast Asia.

With the addition of Moscow to our GIA network, Singapore start-ups and SMEs will be able to secure innovation and business partners as they expand into Russia and beyond.

Singapore welcome Russian and other global start-ups to leverage Singapore as a base through this programme to explore markets in Southeast Asia.

ESG said that Singapore companies have shown increased interest in business opportunities in Russia. In 2020, over 30 Singapore companies participated in Russia-related corporate innovation calls and business matching events organised by ESG and our partners,” the agency said.

Russia’s start-up ecosystem has seen steady growth, with the total value of investments growing from US$768 million in 2018 to US$868 million in 2019, ESG added.

Enterprise Singapore plans to launch “two-way acceleration programmes” in collaboration with an appointed GIA partner, with more details to be announced at a later date.

“The programmes will help Singapore-based companies across different tech sectors build a stronger understanding of the Russian business regulations and culture, meet potential partners and access the market; as well as work with foreign companies to anchor their operations in Singapore and forge new partnerships in Southeast Asia,” ESG said.