Shenasa Will Invest Approximately 233.33 Million Dollars by 2028
By the end of 2028, Shenasa plans to invest approximately 233.33 million dollars in Iran’s innovation and technology ecosystem. The income generated from the exits of this company over 12 years of activity amounts to around 200 billion tomans (approximately 3.33 million dollars).
According to Iran digital economy, Hossein Nazarboland, CEO and board member of Shenasa, announced at a press conference that they will invest 14 trillion tomans (approximately 233.33 million dollars) by the end of 2028. Shenasa, as the venture capital arm of Pasargad Financial Group, has conducted over 150 investments to date.
Nazarboland mentioned that since its inception in 2012, it has created over 1,000 direct jobs and currently has 38 active companies in its investment portfolio, with 24 joint investments having been made.
Regarding exits, Nazarboland explained that the income from exits over the past 12 years amounts to about 200 billion tomans (approximately 3.33 million dollars), with most exits related to co-founders or within the Pasargad and Shenasa ecosystem.
He also discussed the current investment climate and the impact of new regulations such as the Knowledge-Based Leap Law, stating that the investment environment has improved over the past year. He believes that such laws contribute to the country’s investment landscape and attract new capital. According to him, the real issue now is not a lack of money but a shortage of innovative ideas.
Nazarboland identified changing regulations as a serious challenge, noting that new players in the investment cycle need years of trial and error to become familiar with the conditions, and regulations are also changing. He stressed that this issue needs serious attention and resolution by officials.
Focus on Teams with MVPs
Seyed Hamid Reza Alavi, Vice President of Investment at Shenasa, explained the conditions and requirements for teams seeking investment: Teams must be ready to attract investment and have an IRL (Investment Readiness Level) of 6 or above, meaning they should be in a market-product fit stage. A general requirement for investment projects at Shenasa is that the business must have a Minimum Viable Product (MVP). However, businesses with potential are referred to the Trig-up accelerator before market testing.
According to Alavi, although teams’ activities are not limited to Iran, Shenasa prioritizes businesses with Iranian founders.
He also detailed Shenasa’s investment portfolio, noting that investments in businesses directly competing with others in Shenasa’s portfolio are made purposefully to enable team development.
Alavi identified Information and Communication Technology, health, innovative financial services, mining, energy, and food security as attractive investment areas for Shenasa. He added that Shenasa’s current approach focuses on investing in technology-driven businesses and innovative startups in their development stages, meaning businesses that have progressed part of the growth path and are clear about their market and product/service.
Iran Is Not Just Tehran
Mahmoud Karimi, Strategic Vice President of Shenasa, emphasized the importance of paying attention to other cities in Iran, explaining: Iran is not just Tehran, and we should not limit ourselves to Tehran. In searching for ideas, we should also consider other cities. In the next two to three years, the bottleneck of the startup ecosystem will be teams, and we are addressing identified needs to provide services to teams and innovative businesses through specialized acceleration institutions, startup studios, and research and technology funds.
He continued: In the current situation, many technology-driven and innovative startups have potential to advance to higher development stages or public market offerings. Therefore, through the Pre-IPO model, it is possible to gain benefits and achieve greater diversification in Shenasa’s portfolio.
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