Promoting Venture Capital Formation in Kazakhstan

The National Innovation Fund (NIF), under the Ministry of Industry and New Technologies of the government of Kazakhstan, has the responsibility of driving national innovation in Kazakhstani economy through various programs to promote technological competitiveness and economic diversification. One such program is setting up government sponsored venture capital (VC) funds. NIF partnered with a SIPA team to develop recommendations aimed at developing the venture capital (VC) industry in the country. The team produced a set of actionable recommendations with the goal of ensuring that these VC funds are financially profitable and help promote long-term VC formation. The student team combined desk research with two field visits to Almaty and Astana to meet with the NIF team, VC fund managers and other key informants. In order to understand the dynamics of government sponsored VC funds globally, a comparative case study analysis was carried out for six countries: Brazil, Canada, Estonia, Israel, Singapore and the United States. Preliminary findings were conveyed to the NIF during the March field visit, creating a framework for designing a strategy for NIF sponsored VC funds.