March 29, 2022, Tashkent, Uzbekistan – UZCARD, the national payment operator of the Republic of Uzbekistan, and Innotech Group, a leading provider of high-tech solutions for business digitalization, have announced the finalists of the international acceleration program “Startup Bridge.” Six winners were selected from the qualifying round.
The “Startup Bridge” program aims to discover and develop the best technological projects, educate and support young entrepreneurs, and assist in the expansion of startups from Uzbekistan into the Russian fintech market. Within just one month, the project received a significant response, attracting the interest of over 70 technology company founders. Six winners were selected, and training began for them on March 3.
For aspiring entrepreneurs, participation in “Startup Bridge” is a unique opportunity to launch a pilot of their project in partnership with Russian technology companies. Other benefits include industry support and the ability to integrate developments into the ecosystem of international organizations, a unique chance to showcase their achievements at the Demo Day event on May 25, and attract capital from UZCARD Ventures and Innotech Group, as well as from key representatives of the Russian venture ecosystem.
Participants of the Accelerator:
- MIND – a project focused on big data processing, business process automation, and financial activities, particularly internal and external document management.
- AVLO (Smart Deals) – an ecosystem for creating marketplaces.
- GrowyMe – a mobile application to enhance productivity and mindfulness through AI coaching, thematic clubs, habit trackers, marathons, and games.
- Sug’urta Bozori – an insurance services marketplace in Uzbekistan.
- MARTA Terminal – a contactless payment service via smartphones with NFC. The mobile app provides full transaction information and detailed data analytics.
- Teamwork – an online platform for finding IT service providers (freelancers) in Uzbekistan.
The “Startup Bridge” program was developed in collaboration with accelerator finalists and covers topics such as financial modeling and unit economics, fundraising tools, methods of attracting capital from strategic investors, product metrics and analytics, and the principles of venture funds.
“The recent years have seen a significant increase in corporate activity in the venture market. This is especially evident in the fintech sector: in 2021, the venture market in Russia grew more than 3.5 times compared to 2020. We created the ‘Startup Bridge’ accelerator in response to the business community’s demand. The demand for such projects is constantly growing because they help unique ideas gain the necessary foundation and support to launch their businesses. Innotech, as one of Russia’s leading software companies, is ready to share its experience and help budding entrepreneurs build their companies from scratch and take them to the next level,” said Igor Kalganov, CEO of Innotech Group.
“We are very pleased that the acceleration program has received a great response from the professional community. Interest in venture projects is growing every year, so it is very important for us, as the national payment operator of Uzbekistan, to support such initiatives. The program will involve some of the best mentors in the field of technological startups, who will help participants truly unlock their business potential,” noted Farrukh Ziyaev, CEO of UZCARD.
It should be noted that founders of IT projects in areas such as crowd-financing, BNPL, PFM, B2B SaaS, and others, who had a developed prototype or MVP and a calculated business model, could apply for participation. The winners will undergo a special 10-week course with the support of professional mentors and trackers. The classes will be held in a hybrid format at the UZCARD corporate accelerator venue.
Innotech Group is a modern, high-tech, rapidly growing IT company. Since 2020, we have been developing innovative solutions for business digitalization. Innotech Group builds partnerships with leading financial sector companies, offering comprehensive solutions for front- and back-office operations, modern fintech products, and big data systems. Additionally, Innotech Group undertakes custom technology projects of any complexity, helping its clients on the path to digital transformation. Detailed information about the company can be found on the official website.
UZCARD is the leading national payment operator of the Republic of Uzbekistan. The company’s main goal is the continuous search, development, and improvement of products in the national payment business, modernization of modern service maintenance, and growth of services in the Fintech industry. Detailed information about the company can be found on the official website.