The Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI) of the Russian Federation hosted a roundtable entitled Investment Bridges 2026, dedicated to the practical aspects of attracting foreign investment by Russian tech companies in the markets of friendly countries. The discussion focused on the mistakes startups make when entering new jurisdictions, the specifics of deals in the BRICS and MENA regions, and support tools for companies through industry associations and partner ecosystems.
Opening the event, Valery Kardashov, Chairman of the chamber’s Expert Council on Investment in Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence projects, framed the agenda as “applied.” Participants were invited to analyze cases of entering foreign markets and identify where investment will be realistically accessible in 2026–2028.
Ilya Zubkov, Vice President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, also offered his opening remarks. He emphasized that, while state development institutions are important, they cannot replace private initiative. Therefore, the key task is to create an environment where business angels, private funds, and corporate venture arms feel secure, and where “the market should be doing the investing.”
Vladimir Gamza, Chairman of the CCI Council on the Financial Market and Investment, linked the topic of venture capital to a broader economic challenge: Russia has long shown a negative balance in direct investment and has not built a sustainable mechanism for transferring savings into investment. According to Vladimir Gamza, in the previous model, the venture market often served as an “interface” for channeling projects to western platforms, whereas the country now needs an independent, competitive venture project market aligned with the goal of attracting foreign direct investment.
The business part of the program began with presentations by Stanislav Pozharnov, Deputy CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, on creating conditions for international investment, and Artem Genkin, Chairman of the Commission on Venture Financing under the Council on Financial Market and Investment, on the “homework” startups need to do before entering international markets.