Moscow, December 6, 2021 - Sistema SmartTech, a venture fund of Sistema JSFC, invested in Directual LLC, the developer of the low-code Directual platform. The company plans to use the raised funds to develop the platform and enter new markets.

Directual is a cloud-based low-code platform for developing applications, websites and automated systems for business, allowing you to build both back-end (database, role model and business logic) and front-end (user interface) solutions. Directual allows you to work with databases, create data processing logic, build a programming interface (API), design scripts, configure integrations with other services, offers ready-made authorization and authentication tools (AAA) and much more.

The platform accelerates the process of developing standard software applications, freeing up the time of highly qualified programmers and allowing you to speed up the time of launching new software products to the market. On the basis of Directual you can, among other things, build CRM systems, parsers.

Introductory access to the platform is free. As the platform functionality expands and the load on the Directual servers increases users can choose one of the tariffs that is suitable for the traffic level and the required functions.

Directual promotes its products through developer communities and through educational courses on low-code programming offered by the Company. Directual's main clients are startups, freelance developers, small and medium-sized businesses, as well as studios, integrators and consultants developing digital solutions for their clients. Large businesses also use the platform to solve specific tasks. For example, on the basis of Directual, the PIK-group development company has combined more than two dozen different specific construction services and programs, flexibly configuring the automation of document flow and work with contractors; the oil and gas company Schlumberger has created an electronic catalog of products and services, fully automating the order processing process; the asset management company UFG Wealth Management has launched an application for employees. The Directum solution was also used to create Vitrina 22/52, a platform for job search in the fields of Fashion, Beauty, Media and HoReCa.

"The modern world is changing rapidly, and companies need to react very quickly to these changes in order to stay afloat. In these conditions, low-code programming is becoming an increasingly popular tool, as it allows you to adapt IT systems to changing business needs in a short time. We believe in the prospects of the low-code Directual platform, which enables users to assemble a finished product of any complexity faster, cheaper and without deep programming skills," - said the member of the investment committee of the fund Sistema SmartTech Artem Sirazutdinov.

"Low-code programming is one of the most dynamically developing segments of the information technology market, with an annual growth rate of about 30%. We expect that this segment will continue to grow against the background of the trend towards digitalization of the economy around the world and the growing shortage of personnel in the IT sector in this regard – in 2020, the global shortage of specialists in this profile was estimated at 40 million people, and by 2030 it is projected at 85 million people. We are pleased to invest in Directual, which has the potential to become one of the leaders of the global low-code programming market due to the versatility of the platform and the possibility of integration with all key third-party solutions," - said the managing partner of the fund Sistema SmartTech Ksenia Shoygu.