Chinese Investments In Israeli Tech Companies On The Rise – Report

Chinese investments in Israeli high-tech companies and startups have grown significantly over the past three years, from about 15 investments per quarter to 20 over the past two years, according to a new report by the IVC research center.

According to the report, direct Chinese investments make up between 30 to 40 percent of the total capital raised in deals per quarter, and in the first three quarter of 2018, Chinese investors have participated in 35 of the largest deals. Chinese investors were involved in 17 deals that raised $20 million or more in funding in Q1-Q3. Chinese investors have also participated in three out of four high-tech deals that raised over $100 million over the same period.

“In the course of the five past years, Chinese investors participated in 17 deals over $50 million each, almost 60 percent of these were made in 2017-2018,” IVC reported. The most active Chinese investor over the past five years has been Horizon Ventures with 32 deals

Chinese investors have mostly been involved in the software (from five annual deals to 19 in 2016 and to 23 in Q1-Q3/2018) and life sciences (annual average of 19 deals since 2014) sectors, according to the report.

The report came on the heels of a high-profile visit to Israel late last month by Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan