The innovation map is being redrawn with Yıldız Techno VCIF

Yıldız Techno Venture Capital Investment Fund (VCIF), which was launched with the aim of increasing Türkiye’s technology exports and strengthening the entrepreneurship ecosystem, is preparing to expand Türkiye’s innovation potential with its huge fund size. Yıldız Techno VCIF, realized in partnership with YTU Yıldız Technopark and BV Portföy, will meet the funding needs of entrepreneurs with its national and international investor network.

The launch of Yıldız Tekno Venture Capital Investment Partnership (VCIP), which is powered by the extensive start-up and investor infrastructure of Yıldız Techno VCIT and realized in cooperation with BV Portföy, was held with intense participation. The fund, which aims to provide strategic and comprehensive support to start-ups operating in a wide range of fields such as gaming, software-based services, FinTech, InsureTech, artificial intelligence, e-commerce and mobility, will support entrepreneurs operating in a wide range from incubation to advanced stage. With the opportunity to bring entrepreneurs together with foreign investors, Yıldız Techno VCIF will play an important role in Türkiye's goal of transforming itself into an entrepreneurship and innovation centre by increasing its technology exports. Attracting attention with its 1 billion TL fund size, Yıldız Techno VCIF aims to invest in companies and entrepreneurs in the Technopark. Investments will be made in different ways according to the growth stages and needs of the initiatives.

“We Will Continue to Offer More Opportunities for Turkish Entrepreneurs”

Stating that the development of a country depends on universities, Yıldız Technical University Rector Prof. Dr. Tamer Yılmaz said: “I have been proudly serving as the rector of Yıldız Technical University for the last four years. Any solution that is not within the university, that is, at its centre, has no chance of success.  A good university is essential for success in every field from defense industry to technology. Therefore, it is not possible for an approach that does not cover the whole of Türkiye to bring success. In the last four years, our Technopark has opened in Dubai, London, the Gulf and Tashkent. In the near future, there are plans to expand to Amsterdam and Berlin. With the support of mechanisms such as the Venture Capital Investment Partnership (‘VCIP’), we are carrying out successful works. With Yıldız Techno VCIP, we have decided to invest in 23 ventures so far and we are the leader in this field. Now we are realizing Yıldız Techno VCIF. Boğaziçi Ventures is the best in this business. We meet potential investors all over Türkiye and around the world. We are creating an ecosystem that excites them and offers them a great story. As the bright face of Türkiye, we cooperate with a sincerity that inspires confidence globally. We will continue to provide more opportunities for Turkish entrepreneurs by expanding the community we have created to leading cities and other regions of Europe.”

“We Have Successful Works on Globalizing Our Technologies”

Emphasizing that they are in a structure that builds the future, Orhan Tanışman, General Manager of YTU Yıldız Technopark, stated that they have a deep structure with 160 thousand graduates, nearly 20 thousand Technopark employees and 40 thousand students with a unique knowledge of Yıldız culture with a 113-year history. Tanışman said, “We have successful efforts to take our technologies to the global arena. One of the reflections of these efforts was the opening of our London office. We had previously started with the Silicon Valley and continued our expansion to the world with Dubai, which has both financial and market opportunities. Again, we have been continuing our investments with Yıldız Techno Venture Capital Partnership for two years and we have created a serious value here. As Teknopark, we wanted to meet the financial needs of the ecosystem in the first place. Venture Capital Funds are of course a structure that can appeal to a wider audience. Following this, we will also announce our Crowdfunding Platform. Our Technopark is where this whole eco-system is formed. Our main strength in our Technopark is our global brand YTU Startup House. While our Technopark is developing the R&D system, university, sector and state cooperation in Türkiye, we are currently carrying out this structure globally under the YTU Startup House brand. We see Yıldız Techno VCIF at the centre of this structure, which we have created with an end-to-end integrated perspective.”

“We Make Our Choices and Preferences in Accordance with Global Markets”

Stating that game technologies come to mind first when it comes to YTU Yıldız Technopark, Orhan Tanışman said that they lead more than two hundred game studios with the YTU GamesUP project. Tanışman continued as follows: “We manage the game ecosystem. We continue our serious claim in the field of fintech. Presidency of The Republic of Türkiye Investment Office stated that there are more than 800 fintech companies in Türkiye. 86 of these are in our Technopark. In the field of gaming and fintech, there are intensive clusters in Dubai and London. In other words, we are making our expansions in line with global markets. Similarly, we have nearly 20 companies in the field of Insurtech, and we prioritize the USA in this field. We also have serious investments and initiatives in Mobility, Agritech, Edutech and Healthtech. As the strategy of our fund, we have shaped the investment period as 8 plus 2. We have planned 8 years of investment and 2 years of exit. At the end of the day, we have a goal to grow the fund we have collected by 5.6 times. Again, we increased the value increase of our portfolio in Yıldız Tekno VCIP in dollar terms by 1.5 times in one year. One of the most important things in the field of Venture Capital is to find companies to invest in. We are very lucky at that point. Thanks to the structure we have created worldwide companies that promise great value in the future find us. It is up to us to prefer the best.”

“We Are Making a Strategic Start on Behalf of Türkiye's Overall Technology Ecosystem”

Barış Özistek, Managing Partner and CEO of Boğaziçi Ventures, which invests in innovative, technology-oriented startups with high global growth potential in our country with the deep experience of its founders in the field of technology and its extensive international network, said that they focus on innovative technology products that promise constructive disruption with a focus on ‘disruptive innovation’ instead of traditional investment management approach. Speaking about Yıldız Techno VCIF, which was realized with the partnership of BV Portföy within Boğaziçi Ventures, which aims to invest in the future, Özistek continued as follows: “It has been one year since the first seeds of Yıldız Techno VCIF were sown. During this time, we have successfully overcome many challenging stages such as strategy creation and regulation. We can proudly state that Yıldız Technopark's international collaborations and activities are a source of great satisfaction not only for our company but also for Türkiye as a whole. Yıldız Technopark's activities not only contribute to the ecosystem but have also created a dynamic ecosystem itself. With this event today, we are celebrating a strategic and valuable new beginning for both BV Portföy Yönetimi A.Ş. and Türkiye's overall technology ecosystem. This important milestone stands out as a step that reinforces our company's and Türkiye's leadership in the technology sector.”