Dollar bills in glass jar on wooden background. Saving money concept.
Israel Startup Nation had a number of ups and downs in the aftermath of the October 7 Hamas massacre and the ensuing war in Gaza. This is according to a new report released by IVC.
For example, in 2023, Mergers and Acquisitions capital for Israeli firms totaled $9.77 billion, only 22% below the amount in 2022.
This was mostly due to the M&As of over $100 million each, which amounted to $8.95 billion in 20223. The most prominent was the acquisition of Imperva by Thales for $3.6 billion which happened in the third quarter of 2023. Only four Israeli high-tech companies went
public in 2023, continuing the downtrend from 2022.
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IVC also reported that, while the dollar amount, raised by companies other than the top tier dropped by around 40% in H2/2023, the local “Magnificent Group” supplied some
stabilization in a problematic quarter.
“In the roughly 25 years in which IVC has been collecting data about Israeli tech, there has never been anything like the October 7 massacre, and the ensuing war in Gaza,” explained the firm. “As such, it’s hard to say, if Israeli tech performed better or worse than expected. But Q4 is one part of the Israeli tech story during 2023, a challenging year, in which the investment
sentiment towards Israel – as a country, not a technology hub – certainly took a hit.”
IVC further reported that In 2023, the downtrend continued throughout the year, with $6.9 billion in 393 rounds. The fundraising activity in 2023 is similar to the pattern in 2018–2019 when there was a drop in investment activity. The data reflects a 44% decrease in the number of deals and a 56% drop in capital from 2022.
Also, in Q2–Q3/2023, Israeli Tech fundraising began to stabilize, but the ongoing war in Gaza, which began at the outset of Q4/2023, changed this, and the downtrend from late 2022 has continued. However, in Q4, just 76 deals took place, similar to the lower levels seen in 2015–2018. These deals accounted for $1.45 billion, a decrease of 15% in capital raised and
16% in the number of deals, respectively, compared to Q3/2023.
Founded in 1997, IVC is the leading data source and business information company in Israel’s high-tech industry.
