“IF WE JOIN HANDS – WE WILL BE SUPERPOWER. IF NOT, WE’LL HAVE POWER, ANYWAY”
Vasyl Khmelnytsky, the founder of the investment group UFuture and K.Fund, speaks about the impression of an event organized by Ukrainians in Davos, the power of joint work and the steady movement of the business sector forward.
– What are your impressions of Davos?
– Many of coolest innovation companies, banks and governments attended. This is a good start for Ukraine House Davos, where there was advanced know-how and great prospects. It is here where we should show our future partners: Ukraine is a stable country, we have many opportunities for money, brains and innovations. There are many companies in Ukraine that need to communicate with each other and join hands to gain benefits, position themselves and the country, achieve synergy of business and innovation. Davos is a good example of such interaction. If the state helps too – it’s a plus, but if it does not, then we have to act on our own – to roll up our sleeves, get to work and not be afraid of challenges.
– You presented your projects in Davos. Was it successful?
– UFuture is a company that combines three areas of the future: high technology, industrial parks and alternative energy. All of them are aimed at developing the country. We expect that all these projects will be profitable and we work to make them more efficient and affordable to our clients.
As for Unit.City, everything is easier here. This is a small Silicon Valley in Kyiv, built as a city in the city, with full infrastructure – a kindergarten, a school, a university, sports gyms, housing and office centers. We want to create an environment where businesses will interact with each other and generate new ideas. We want to show and realize these ideas at the world level, to utilize knowledge and to get synergy from partnership. I am pleased that there were different people in Davos coming to me, mayors of cities who know about our Unit.City project. It positions our country as innovative and contributes to our future.
– In a year or two, Ukraine House will be bigger and will be able to present ideas, including those of Unit.City, to the international community…
– Ukraine House should present all the effective ideas of the country. If these are success stories, they should be shown to foreign investors in the right way, because they love success. They have to see where they can make money. And one should not be under the illusion that foreign investors come to our country to help – their goal is to make money. We must create conditions for making money, paying taxes, employing our people and thus giving Ukrainians the opportunity to become wealthy. After all, the main purpose of economic development is to make ordinary people rich.
– How does it influence the reputation of the country?
– What is the difference between business and politics? I, as an entrepreneur, mostly speak about my projects when I have implemented or am implementing them. A politician talks about projects that may never be implemented by anyone, but they want the voters to like them. And reputation means your business, which has value for you and for others. If there is a reputation-based business, there will be a reputable country. Of course, it’s faster and easier when businesses and the country keep up. But there is no point in waiting until the government and administration begin to fulfill their obligations. We have to do what we can do. If we join hands – this will be superpower. If not – it’s worse, but it’s power anyway.
– What should one expect from Davos next year?
– We have no intention to make Ukraine House bigger. The goal is to make a successful country. I want to wish enterprises to learn more in practice, to make decisions and not to be afraid of risks. Davos is one of the segments. The important thing is that we are open, so we immediately share knowledge and information from here.