News Briefs

A new research, rating the top 20 startup ecosystems in the world, was published by Startup Genome. Silicon Valley steadfastly holds first place, however, Tel Aviv, which was ranked fifth in the previous ranking, has jumped up to second place.

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Israeli company N-Trig, which develops touchscreen technology, is in the midst of a financing round, en-route to $25 million. In the first two months of the round, the company has raised $10 million. So far, the round is being financed by existing investors and a new, unnamed private investor.

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Commtouch Software Ltd., an Israeli company which develops internet security technology and cloud-based services, has acquired German company eleven, which develops mail-based Security-as-a-Service (SecaaS) solutions. Commtouch paid $11.3 for the German company in cash and shares.

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Israeli pharmaceutical company Compugen, which develops genomics-based drug and diagnostic discovery tools, has sold its controlling stake in its subsidiary Keddem Bioscience. The acquisition, estimated to worth $15 million, was made by a privately owned US based investment company.

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Idomoo, an Israeli company which develops platforms for mass-scale customer communication via personalized video, has won the Target Social Video & TV Challenge at this year’s ad:tech New York event. The Israeli company was one of four start-ups selected to compete in the Video & TV category, designed to find the best platforms and services that can fully utilize the power of video through various media channels.

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Web video management and distribution company Kaltura has raised $25 million in its recent financing round. The round was led by Japanese companies Mitsui and Orix. Including the recent round, the company has raised $55 million to date.

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Sync.ME, an app which enables smart synchronization of smartphone contacts with various social networks, has raised a $4 million investment. The investment was made by private investors. Sync.ME has raised $4.5 million to date.

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Library software company Ex Libris, which was founded in Israel and operates out of Jerusalem, has been sold to San Francisco-based private equity fund Golden Gate Capital. Although the amount Golden Gate paid was not disclosed, the deal is estimated at $250-300 million.

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Asian electronic giants NEC and Samsung have signed a deal to integrate Israeli Extreme Reality‘s technology into their all-in-one computers. Herzliya-based Extreme Reality develops gesture-control technology for computers. According to estimates, the deal will ensure millions of dollars in revenue for the Israeli company over the next few years.

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Israeli pharmaceutical company Kamada has announced positive results of its Phase I/II clinical trial of the company’s AAT protein, the active ingredient in its drug Glassia. The results indicate that the drug may halt the progression of the disease and enable the pancreas to continue excreting insulin.

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Israeli startup company Invi, which enhances texting apps by enabling user to view shared online content without using a third-party app, has raised $750,000 in its seed financing round. The round was led by Chinese Billionaire Li Ka-Shing’s VC Horizon Ventures.

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Ness Technologies, an Israeli global provider of information technology services and solutions, announced that it has won a five-year outsourcing contract to manage and maintain Mul-T-Lock‘s information systems. The contract is valued at approximately $2.6 million, including Mul-T-Lock’s IT infrastructure as well as various applications.

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Israeli clean tech company P2W (Pollution To Water) has signed a $35 million deal with mining giant AngloGold Ashanti, which operates 17 gold mines worldwide. P2W will install and operate water-purification systems in the mines, to clean the water that gets contaminated in the mining process.

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Palo-Alto Networks, a next-generation network security company owned by Israeli Nir Zuk, has been declared the second fastest-growing company in North America, according to accounting firm Delloite 2012 “Fast 500” list. Palo-Alto Networks, which went public earlier this year, has shown a growth rate of 166,938 percent.

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Origami Logic, an Israeli owned Silicon Valley based startup has raised $9.3 million. The company, which develops Business Intelligence systems for marketers, says that it will use some of the investment money to set up an R&D center in Israel and employ dozens of Israeli workers.

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