DFJ VTB Aurora

DFJ VTB Aurora was structured as a joint venture between Draper Fisher Jurvetson and VTB Capital, with DFJ providing venture capital expertise and VTB Capital contributing the institutional backing and local market access. Alexandra Johnson served as Managing Director, reporting to a board representing both partners. This made it distinct from a typical LP-GP fund in that both partners had direct operational involvement.

The firm focused on enterprise software, financial technology, artificial intelligence, and industrial technology companies. The investment mandate targeted early-stage and growth-stage opportunities, predominantly in Russia with secondary exposure to broader CIS markets.

Following U.S. and EU sanctions on Russian financial institutions in 2014, DFJ publicly clarified that its relationship with the Aurora fund was a legacy commitment predating the sanctions. By 2015, DFJ had distanced itself from active involvement. The Aurora team continued managing existing portfolio investments independently, though the sanctions environment constrained new capital deployment.

Alexandra Johnson, as Managing Director, was the key investment decision-maker at DFJ VTB Aurora. She brought experience from both DFJ's global network and the Russian technology ecosystem, which was central to the fund's value proposition of combining Silicon Valley venture discipline with local market access.

The current operational status of DFJ VTB Aurora is not publicly confirmed. The fund was actively investing through at least 2014, but the sanctions environment and DFJ's subsequent distancing from the relationship created significant structural headwinds. No recent investment activity has been publicly disclosed.