October 7, 2014 | The Israeli drug discovery company Compugen announced that certain aspects of its predictive approach to therapeutics discovery in novel immune checkpoints will be presented at upcoming scientific conferences. The presentations that will be given at up to three such events will also include the experimental results from some of the immune checkpoint trials in cancer immunotherapy and autoimmune diseases. The three events that the company will present at are the 22nd Annual International Cancer Immunotherapy Symposium in New York City, The Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer Annual Meeting in Baltimore, Maryland and the American College of Rheumatology Annual Meeting held in Boston. Compugen is a publicly traded company that was founded in 1993 by Eli Mintz, Simchon Faigler and Amir Natan.
News Briefs
Compugen To Present Immune Checkpoint Findings At 3 US Conferences
Beepi Raises $60M To Expand Used Car Marketplace
October 7, 2014 | Beepi, the peer-to-peer used car marketplace, raised $60 million in a funding round that ended Tuesday. Together with existing investors Redpoint Ventures, the Silicon Valley Bank, among others, new investors Foundation Capital and SherpaVentures joined in funding the round. According to the company, the money will be used to expand Beepi’s presence outside of Los Angeles, California where the company is currently based. Beepi is a unique used car marketplace that not only is the first of its kind to accept Bitcoin as payment, but also provides financing and comfortable delivery options for those that want to sell or buy a used car.
Lockheed Martin Israel And Yissum Sign Collaborative Research Agreement
October 6, 2014 | Lockheed Martin Israel and the Yissum Research Development Center announced that they have signed an agreement to conduct joint collaborative research. The collaboration between the two groups will focus on basic and applicable scientific research in areas like Quantum Information Sciences and Material Sciences. Yissum is the technology transfer company of Israel’s Hebrew University of Jerusalem. According to the agreement, Lockheed Martin will have the right to purchase an exclusive license to use any invention or product that results from the joint research endeavors. Yissum Research Development Center was founded in 1964 to protect and commercialize the Hebrew University’s intellectual property. Lockheed Martin is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland and recently opened a subsidiary in Israel.
Kadimastem Approaches FDA To Begin Trials On ALS Treatment
October 6, 2014 | The Israeli regenerative medicine company Kadimastem reports that they approached the US Food & Drug Administration regarding a stem cell treatment it is developing for ALS. This is the first approach made by the company to the American drug approval body in which Kadimastem intends to consolidate a preliminary outline for its continuing trials on the ALS drug. The company recently posted positive results in a pre-clinical trial where the efficacy of injecting support cells (astrocytes) into the spinal fluid of ALS model mice was tested, increasing the life expectancy of the mice treated and seeing a significant improvement of their motor function. Kadimastem was co-founded by CEO Yossi Ben Yossef in 2009 together with Chief Scientist and winner of the Israel Prize, Prof. Michel Revel.
2014 Israel Conference On Israeli Innovation Held In L.A., Oct. 30-31st
October 5, 2014 | The Israel Conference, held this year for its 6th consecutive year, is a business conference bringing together technology innovators and investors in high tech, media and entertainment, advertising, mobile, content, gaming and much more. Over 700 business executives are set to attend the conference, which will be held in Los Angeles from the 30th-31st of October, providing them with a chance to meet leaders of successful Israeli companies. Each of the selected speakers, who include Yossi Vardi and Noam Bardin of Waze, among others, represent the spirit of innovation in the Israel market. Attendees of the conference will gain an insider’s understanding of the growth of private and publicly-held Israeli companies. To register for the conference, go to the conference’s website.
Report: Israel Pharmaceutical Industry To Reach $2.3B Valuation By 2020
October 5, 2014 | According to “Research Markets,” in the period from 2008-2013, the Israel pharmaceutical market increased at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 3 percent. While the Israeli pharmaceutical sector was worth $1.7 billion in 2008, it is projected to reach a value of $2.3 billion by 2020. In addition, the study found that the pharmaceutical sector is the largest and most established sector of the Israeli life sciences industry, with a total of 76 companies, 22 percent involved in drug discovery and 17 percent in drug delivery. This is helped by the fact that Israel is the headquarters to Teva Pharmaceuticals, one of the largest manufacturers and exporters of generic pharmaceuticals and active pharmaceutical ingredients in the world. Israel also has impressive R&D rates, with the highest number of registered medical device patents per capita in the world.
MobileSpaces Acquired By Pulse Secure For $100M
October 5, 2014 | The mobile app security company MobileSpaces was acquired by Pulse Secure for $100 million. Pulse Secure is an access and mobile security solutions provider and this is company’s first investment in the broader mobility market since it became an independent company. Pulse Secure hopes that MobileSpaces’ BYOD (bring-your-own-device) solution will help complete the company’s goal to provide seamless, secure access from anywhere in the world. MobileSpaces will join Pulse Secure with 20 employees that are based in Silver Spring, Maryland and Tel Aviv, Israel. MobileSpaces was founded by CEO David Goldschlag and CTO Yoav Weiss.
Report: Israeli IPOs In US Top $3.5B In 2014
October 5, 2014 | According to a “Globes” report, Israeli companies have raised $3.5 billion on the US capital market in 2014 through a number of public offerings on the countries largest stock exchanges. High-tech companies like CyberArk, which recently raised $85.8 million in its NASDAQ IPO, Varonis Systems, Mobileye, Borderfree, and biotech companies BioBlast Pharma and MacroCure all listed IPOs in 2014. The companies sought to raise extra funds through IPOs for the continued development of their product or service and to overcome dry periods. In addition, high-tech companies’ private placement front from funds, investment companies and angel investors also spiked in comparison to records from previous years.
Adama Acquires Chinese Chemicals Companies For $623M
October 5, 2014 | The agrochemicals company Adama Agricultural Solutions announced that it will be acquiring Chinese businesses for $300 million and assume an additional $323 million in debt. According to a party interest deal between the China National Agrochemcial Cooperation, the China National Chemical Corporation (ChemChina) and Adama’s parent company, the companies will be sold to Adama and are expected to raise its revenue to approx. $4 billion annually. In addition, the sale will give Adama a major stake in the Chinese market. The company hopes to finalize the deal in the first half of 2015. Adama Agricultural Solutions is the product of a merger between Israeli companies Agan Chemical Manufacturers and Makteshim Chemical Works in the 1990s.
China’s BrightFood Gets Three Month Extension On Tnuva Deal
October 5, 2014 | BrightFood and Apax Partners have reached an agreement regarding the final pricing of the Tnuva deal, according to “Globes.” The renewed negotiations on the company’s price came as the Chinese food corporation BrightFood demanded a reduction of hundreds of millions of shekels for the purchase of the controlling share of Tnuva. As sources told “Globes,” Tnuva was valued in the NIS 8.4-8.6 billion range (approx. $2 billion). It is now believed that the deal will be finalized before the end of the year, when BrightFood will pay Apax the proceeds of the deal in cash. Tnuva was acquired by BrightFood in May of this year, with the company promising to pay up to $2.5 billion for 56 percent of the company’s holdings.
MedAware Prescription Error Alert Co. Raises $1M In Series A Funding
October 2, 2014 | MedAware, the developer of big data analytics for the medical prescription market, announced that it completed a $1 million Series A funding round. The round was led by equity crowdfunding platform OurCrowd together with GE Ventures. The investment is GE Ventures first software investment in Israel’s growing health tech industry. According to the company, the money will be used to drive initial sales to healthcare providers, insurance companies and large pharmacy chains. MedAware’s technology specializes in identifying prescription errors in real time and was co-founded in 2012 by CEO Gidi Stein.
Waze Releases Version 3.9 With New Parking, ‘Places’ Features
October 2, 2014 | The Google-owned navigation company Waze updated its application to version 3.9 for iPhone and Android to include a number of new features. One of the features, which still hasn’t reached its final development stage, will save users’ parking spot location to help them find their car, alert users of nearby parking facilities and approximate how long it should take to find a spot. In addition, Waze will offer a feature called ‘Places’ that makes it possible to edit details about a specific location, rate it, fill in information about nearby parking, and photograph the location to make it easier to find. The final aspect of the new version will use a plan called ‘Connected Citizens’ to provide government authorities with real-time anonymized crowdsourced traffic data. The service will be activated in ten different locations all over the world, from Tel Aviv, Israel to Jakarta, Indonesia.
Houzz Raises $165M, Releases New Marketplace Feature
October 2, 2014 | The home remodeling website Houzz announced that it raised $165 million in a Series D funding round led by Sequoia Capital. Existing investors Oren Zeev, New Enterprise Associates, GGV Capital and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers also participated together with new investors DST Global and T. Rowe Price. Houzz founder and CEO Adi Tatarko told TechCrunch that the company plans to use the funds to accelerate the company’s global expansion. The company also launched a new service, Houzz Marketplace, that will allow users to directly purchase some of the items they see as they browse the site. Houzz was launched in 2009 in CEO Adi Tatarko and Alon Cohen.
StoreDot Raises $32M In Latest Fund Raising Round
October 2, 2014 | StoreDot announced that it raised $32 million in the company’s latest investment round led by Singulariteam, a private investment company led by Moshe Hogeg the founder of Mobli. In addition, Roman Abramovich invested $10 million through his private asset management company Millhouse LLC. This puts the company’s total funds raised at $48 million to date. According to the company, which has produced novel technology to naturally charge smartphones in under 30 seconds, the funds will be used to continue in the development of the product and hire more staff at their Ramat Gan office. StoreDot was founded by CEO Doron Myersdorf, CTO Prof. Simon Litsyn and Chief Scientist Prof. Gil Rosenman.
Israel Corp. Invests $130M In Qoros
October 2, 2014 | The Israel Corporation will lend the Chinese car developer Qoros $130 million as an owners loan to free a joint venture, in which it owns a 50 percent stake, from a $300 million guarantee. Israel Corp. reported to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange that it would issue the loan in two sets of payments: $60 million in the fourth quarter of 2014 and $70 million in the first quarter of 2015. Israel Corp is partnered in Qoros with the Chinese car manufacturer Cherie, with Israel Corp investing over $600 million in the project since it began. Israel Corp is one of the largest holding companies in Israel and one of the largest companies on the TASE.
