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☆ Op-ed: After crisis, Israel's economy always comes back stronger
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-12 | by ( Anat Katz | Economic Minister To North America For Israel'S Ministry Of Economy | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

In just a few hours, the nation of Israel went from business as usual to national emergency and national mourning. Throughout this ongoing crisis, the resilience of Israel's economy has once again taken center stage. This should be no surprise, as resilience has always been a key tenet of Israel's long-term success, military or otherwise. Most recently, the Covid-19 pandemic struck a terrible blow to Israel's economy in the second quarter of 2020, reducing GDP by roughly 30% annualized. The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange's flagship TA-125 Index dropped over 8% in that war's opening days, but took only 40 days to recover to pre-war levels.

Persons: Warren Buffett, Israel, Berkshire Hathaway, Buffett Organizations: Tel, Tel Aviv Stock Exchange's, TA Locations: Israel, Lebanon, Berkshire, Lebanese, Iscar, Tel Aviv

☆ Israel-Hamas war risks further deglobalization and inflation
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-15 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Washington, DC CNN —The global economy is facing tremendous uncertainty from the war between Hamas and Israel in the Middle East, on top of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. They say Israel’s declaration of war against Hamas could be yet another catalyst for deglobalization, though the extent of that is still up in the air. If deglobalization does get exacerbated, what would that mean for inflation and monetary policy, globally? With deglobalization, you get a global economic environment that’s less competitive, and when there’s less competition, that is ultimately inflationary, causing prices to rise. Over the Covid era, China shut down production, disrupting the global supply chain, so deglobalization would bring some production back within US borders.

Persons: Wells, Bell, Brendan McKenna, that’s, Trump, there’s, Hanna Ziady, we’ve, ”, Avi Hasson, Patrick Harker, John Williams, Tom Barkin, Michelle Bowman, Tesla, Christopher Waller, Lisa Cook, Jerome Powell, Austan Goolsbee, Michael Barr, Raphael Bostic, Loretta Mester Organizations: CNN Business, Bell, DC CNN, Trump, Hamas, Nation Central, Philadelphia Fed, US Commerce Department, Federal Reserve, National Association of Home Builders, China’s National Bureau of Statistics, Procter & Gamble, United Kingdom’s, National Statistics, American Airlines, US Labor Department, Federal, Fed Locations: Washington, Israel, Russia, Ukraine, China, Wells Fargo, Gaza, deglobalization, United States, Mexico, US, Tel Aviv, New York

☆ How the tech sector in Israel is navigating the war
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-13 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

London CNN —Israel’s vast tech sector has seen its fair share of crises, from financial downturns and the Covid-19 pandemic to periodic flare-ups in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “This is different than anything we’ve faced before,” said Avi Hasson, the CEO of Start-Up Nation Central (SNC), a non-profit that promotes Israel’s tech industry globally. “Seasoned investors with experience backing Israeli startups are not backing away due to the war,” said Samid of TechAviv. For many in Israel’s tech industry, the devastating circumstances have only served to underscore the sector’s famed resilience. “Israeli [tech] hasn’t stopped,” Hasson noted.

Persons: we’ve, ”, Avi Hasson, wasn’t, Leah Walters, Monday.com, Rafael Henrique, Yaron Samid, Jensen Huang, Jon Medved, “, Hillel Fuld, it’s, hasn’t, ” Hasson Organizations: London CNN, Hamas, Nation Central, CNN, Tech, SNC, Nasdaq, Tel, Nvidia, Israel Innovation Authority, ” Tech, Microsoft, Google Locations: Israel, Tel Aviv, “, Israeli

Insider spoke with startup founders and VCs who are managing companies while aiding the war effort. Startup founders and employees have traveled back to Israel from their homes abroad to take up arms and defend their country. The call to serveIn Israel, military service is mandatory for all citizens over 18. These startup founders and employees are using the skills they use every day like problem solving, multitasking and leading during the war effort. "I'm lucky to be a cofounder not a sole founder, so I'm relying on my cofounder," Kandel explained.

Persons: Israel, VCs, —, Oren Kandel, I'm, We're, Munch, Kandel, Isaac Gili, Jon Medved, David, Noy, Danielle Eisenberg, Leyb, Eisenberg, I've, Medved, Oren Kandel Kandel, that's, Ben Yellin, Ofer Sharon, Itamar Friedman, " Eisenberg, Tasmin Lockwood Organizations: Palestinian, Hamas, Service, Wednesday, Israeli Defense Forces, Startup, Israel Relief, Microsoft, Israel, Tel, Lightspeed Venture Partners, GGV, Insight Partners Locations: Gaza, Israel, Gedera, New York, cyberintelligence, Tel Aviv, Binyamina

☆ Israel's tech hub is a crucial part of its economy. Now, startups could face tougher funding rounds amid the war, experts say.
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-11 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Getting overseas funding could become difficult for Israel's tech industry amid the war, experts told Reuters. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. AdvertisementAdvertisementIsrael's tech startups have already been facing a tough year attracting funding amid the implosion of a major lender for start-ups, global recession fears, and rising borrowing rates. Investment in Israel's tech startups has already been falling for seven straight quarters even before the war started, according to a report by the think tank Startup Nation Policy Institute, released on September 30. AdvertisementAdvertisementTech insiders also express optimism for the industry, citing Israel's reputation as an established tech hub.

Persons: —, Jon Medved, Avi Hasson, Catalyst, Hasson Organizations: Reuters, Tech, Silicon Valley Bank, Service, Nation Central, Investment, Nation Policy Institute, Israel ., Insight Partners Locations: Israel, Silicon, Tel Aviv, Europe, Israel . New York

☆ Analysis: War with Hamas threatens funding recovery in Israel's vital tech industry
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-10 | by ( Steven Scheer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"This is not a particularly easy time to get investment," he added, noting the number of flights to Israel that have been cancelled. CONFIDENCE EARNEDThat said, Hasson and others expect Israel's tech sector to rebound in the same way it has in past conflicts with Palestinian and Hezbollah militants. Medved said that he believes that Israel will prevail as an tech investment destination. "Historically, every time Israel has gone to war, long term has been a buy side," he said. "That shift may even help push those investors who might have been reluctant (to invest in Israel)," he said.

Persons: Jon Medved, Israel, Maya Eisen Zafrir, Avi Hasson, Hasson, Medved, Arie Zilberstein, Gem's, Ariel Efergan, Hillel Fuld, Steven Scheer, Krystal Hu, Louise Heavens Organizations: Overseas, OurCrowd, Hamas, Silicon Valley Bank, IVC Research, Investment, Startup Nation, Israel, U.S, Insight Partners, Security, Startup, Thomson Locations: Israel's, Israel, Gaza, Egypt, Yom, Silicon, Palestinian, New York, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem

☆ Israel’s Arab citizens demand justice after alarming rise in gang-related murders
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( Hadas Gold | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Standing at a protest march in Haifa against the rising crime wave affecting Arab communities in Israel last week, Abu Salah cries out “Enough! Filling a ‘vacuum’The rise in violence is fueled by organized crime, Israeli officials say. Nobody else is doing this job except the criminal organizations,” Abu Rass says. “In the Arab sector, criminal organizations are active that have armed militias with thousands of soldiers and many weapons,” Ben Gvir said last month. On Thursday the committee announced proposals including giving police additional technology and administrative tools, and increasing financial penalties against criminal organizations.

Persons: Israel CNN — Sajida Abu Salah, Abu Salah, Abu Salah’s, Ali, –, “, ”, Sajida Abu Salah, Matthias Somm, Thabet Abu Rass, Abraham, ” Abu Rass, Abu Rass, ’, Johara, Kareem Khadder, ” Khnifes, Ahmad Tibi, Itamar Ben Gvir, Netanyahu, ” Tibi, Ben Gvir, ” Ben Gvir, Benjamin Netanyahu, Shin Bet, Shin, ” Netanyahu Organizations: Israel CNN, CNN, Abraham Initiatives, Abraham, US State Department, National, National Security, Israel Police, Shin, ’ Locations: Haifa, Israel, Arab, United States, Tira, Ronen, “

"It's just a very high level of uncertainty," said Amit, who is registering his artificial intelligence-based cloud security firm Gomboc in Delaware. Michael Fertik, founder of Heroic Ventures, a Silicon Valley-based early-stage venture investor, has invested in more than a dozen Israeli startups since 2015. He insists on Delaware incorporation and existing Israeli startups seeking a new funding round from him must switch. But the Israeli government's judicial overhaul is casting a shadow for some. Adam Fisher, a partner at Bessemer Venture Partners and long-time investor in Israeli startups, has been happy to invest in Israeli-based tech firms over the past decade.

Persons: Amir Cohen, Benjamin, Ian Amit, Amit, Ami Applebaum, Yair Geva, Herzog, Fox, Neeman, Ronen Feldman, Michael Fertik, Adam Fisher, Fisher, Ayal Shenhav, Steven Scheer, Emily Rose, Mark Potter Organizations: U.S Embassy, REUTERS, Entrepreneurs, Reuters, Israel Innovation Authority, Ministry of Innovation, Science, Technology, Startup Nation, Heroic Ventures, Delaware C Corp, Bessemer Venture Partners, Gross, Co, TechAviv, Partners, Thomson Locations: Tel Aviv, Israel, JERUSALEM, United States, Delaware

☆ Startup nation no more? Investments plunge as Israel pushes on with judicial overhaul
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-11 | by ( Elliott Gotkine | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The judicial overhaul and the uncertainty, disruption and risks that come with it, are forcing him to shift Tipalti’s money and talent overseas, he says. The company keeps all its funds outside Israel, apart from three months’ payroll as required by its bank, he says. At the same time, money going into Israel’s 7,000 startups is plunging, says Ari Strasberg, SNC’s Vice President of Strategy. According to SNC, tech startups raised $15.5 billion in 2022, the equivalent to just under 3% of the country’s GDP. Protesters still hope the government will reverse course, or that its judicial overhaul bills will be struck down by the Supreme Court.

Persons: Chen Amit, ” Amit, Amit, Robert Israch, –, He’s, Ari Strasberg, ”, Morgan Stanley, Benjamin Netanyahu, Bezalel Smotrich Organizations: Israel CNN, Kaplan, CNN, Nation Central ”, “ Investments, SNC, Finance Ministry, Technology, Supreme Locations: Tel Aviv, Israel, Foster City , California, Israeli

☆ Opinion | Israel’s Self-Inflicted Wound
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-25 | by ( Bret Stephens | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

A demagogue sacrifices his nation for himself. The crisis in Israel is sometimes described as a battle of left against right, secular against religious, Ashkenazi against Mizrahi Jews. Israel’s demographic challenges are well known, but there’s a challenge within the challenge: If the people who made Israel the “Startup Nation” are heading for the exits, the long-term basis of Israel’s power will erode. Prayers won’t save Israel if it lacks a world-class economy to sustain a regionally dominant military. Israelis have a penchant for hyperbole, and this week has brought a lot of lamentations about the “end of Israeli democracy.” That’s an unwarranted counsel of despair as well as an overstatement: Israeli democracy has survived worse.

Persons: Israel wouldn’t, Netanyahu weren’t, Netanyahu, Naftali Bennett, There’s, ” Organizations: “ Locations: Israel

☆ Israeli institutional tech investment down 40% in 2022 - report
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Steven Scheer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Over the second half of last year, just 16 investments were made by Israeli institutional investors - four of those being early stage seed deals. But institutional investors have not been a big part of its success, with most investment coming from venture capital funds. Led by mostly foreign VCs, Israeli tech firms raised some $15 billion in 2022. Nimrod Vromen, chief executive of Consiglieri, said that institutions last year had more inclination for early stage investments. "Israeli institutional investors’ experience in early stage investments, combined with the Israeli government’s commitment to supporting the startup ecosystem amidst political legislative turbulence, signals potential for future investment growth," he said.

Persons: Arnon Segev, Yoav Sherman, Nimrod Vromen, Vromen, Steven Scheer, Ed Osmond Organizations: Israel Innovation Authority, Israel Venture Capital, Thomson

☆ Analysis: Israel's tech sector reels from SVB collapse, proposed judicial reform
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Steven Scheer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

In an industry of around 400,000 there are currently around 6,000 vacant tech jobs, according to government data. More than half of the country's startups held an account with SVB, companies and venture capital investors said, in some cases their only U.S. banking facility although the amounts involved are not fully known. Tech companies and investors alike said SVB was a rarity in the banking industry, familiar with Israel's tech ecosystem and offering loan terms unmatched by other banks. Citing the judicial reforms, Adam Fisher, a partner at investment firm Bessemer Venture Partners, said fewer American banks may be willing to lend to Israeli companies, which means less competition and more onerous terms. Israel's tech companies are therefore likely to flock to register as U.S. companies, while keeping R&D back home, said Yaron Samid, managing partner of the TechAviv Founder Partners fund.

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