After reaching a record $8.3 billion in 2019, Israeli companies have reported more than $7.6 billion in the first nine months of the pandemic year.
By ISRAEL21c Staff
Despite the worldwide Covid crisis, Israeli companies have raised a cumulative $7.6 billion thus far this year, including a record $1.1 billion in August alone, according to Start-Up Nation Central.
That puts the country on track to meet or break the record $8.3 billion raised in 2019 as reported by Tel Aviv-based research company IVC-ZAG.
Some of the biggest investment rounds in the past nine months: insure-tech company Next Insurance raised $250 million, cybersecurity firm Snyk ($200 million), fintech startup Pagaya ($102 million), digital payments company Melio ($80 million), precision oncology company NovellusDX ($57 million), facial recognition company AnyVision ($43 million), payroll platform Papaya Global ($40 million) and robotic solar panel cleaning company Ecoppia Scientific ($40 million).
While investments in seed-stage companies are indeed down during the coronavirus pandemic, funding for more established companies has continued to rise.
The first quarter of 2020 – before the pandemic hit – saw a record-breaking $2.74 billion in investments, starting off the year on an exceptionally good foot.
Some sectors are experiencing a boom specifically because of the pandemic, including fintech, healthcare, ed-tech and cybersecurity.