What is going on at Israel’s secret ‘off-shore’ business lounge and who raised $110 million?

Court rejects Amnesty International petition to withdraw NSO’s export license. Judge said she is satisfied that the defense ministry’s oversight of defense exports is sufficient. Read more

Inside Israel’s secret ‘off-shore’ business lounge. In the coronavirus era, businesses were hit with lockdowns and travel bans. Here’s how three Israeli institutions conspired to open its skies to foreign investors. Read more

A camel on the beach. Photo: Reuters

VC firm Amiti secures $110 million for third fund. Modi Rosen of Tel Aviv-based venture capital firm Magma, joined forces with Amiti’s founder Ben Rabinowitz to establish the new early stage fund. Read more

Interview | Mally Bitzur-Parnes is on a mission to drag Israeli industry into the 21st century. Covid-19 outbreak made change-resistant manufacturers understand the need for modernization, says the chairwoman of the Israel advanced production institute. Read more 

DiplomaTech | Resolute Chile ready for Israeli tech solutions, says trade attaché. Hadar Shor believes Chile should be an obvious market for Israeli companies and can also serve as a perfect springboard to the rest of South America. Read more  

NetApp completes Spot.io acquisition for $450 million. Spot.io offers cloud computing optimization services to software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies. Using machine learning algorithms, it monitors the availability and pricing of computation power offered by cloud services to optimize use by clients. Read more

Tech leaders say West Bank annexation would be catastrophic for Israel. A panel of tech executives warns of the likely harm to befall their industry and the entire economy in the event of Israel deciding to take over parts of the West Bank. Read more  

Reaching less than 50% its capacity, Via’s Tel Aviv shuttle service gets another year on the road. The Israeli transportation ministry recently approved Via’s ride-sharing service Bubble for an additional period of one year, likely realizing the need to monitor public transportation passengers is crucial in fighting off the current health crisis. Read more

Israel Innovation Authority eases terms for protecting institutional investors’ investments in tech. The minimal investment eligible for protection will be $29 million instead of the original $43.5 million minimum and several investors will be allowed to partner on a single investment. Read more  

Solar-powered transmitters to warn Israeli drivers of camels on the road. As soon as a camel comes within 100 meters of a road or rail track, GPS users will receive an automatic notification, for example via the Waze application. Read more