Clear and Present DangerMichael Shaulov: "Investors are aware that legislation is being introduced that discriminates against certain populations"
Clear and Present Danger
Michael Shaulov: "Investors are aware that legislation is being introduced that discriminates against certain populations"
"The processes that have been taking place in Israel in the last month are worrying, especially the intervention in the legal system and the changes in the foundations of democracy. What we are seeing here is what I was taught in history and citizenship classes as the first series of blows that dismantle democracies, points on the line that leads not only to Hungary but also to Russia. We have also seen in the United States how when you start messing around with changing the Supreme Court in one term, it leads to a violation of the freedom of abortion in the next term, and the wheel cannot be turned back. The violation of rights rolls out very quickly, to other minorities, to LGBT people, to women, etc.
"The Americans ask me many questions. They are surprised how it is possible that Benjamin Netanyahu returned despite the indictments against him, and how there are so many people in the government with criminal cases against them or with such extreme views. And at the end of all the questions, we also sit down at the business negotiation table.
“We perceive ourselves as a strong and dominant country, but in practice we are a small country in a global business world, and investors have an agenda. It is important to them with whom they do business, and they are aware that legislation is being introduced that discriminates against certain populations. Even if at the moment it seems that the reform of the legal system is not related to the business world, history shows that in countries where similar processes began, in the end the ability of the courts to protect property and create a clean and business-friendly legal framework was damaged. Furthermore, in every country there is a capital-government relationship, and when the government has strong leverage over the legal system - a business group that can influence a system also begins to form. These things turn very quickly into a reluctance to invest in the country."
Michael Shaulov is a high-tech entrepreneur and CEO & Co-Founder of Fireblocks.
