Yozma
Yozma, Yozma Program, or Yozma Fund was a venture capital organization in Israel that initially started out as a government funded program in 1993 to help kick start venture capital, angel investing, and private equity in Israel's economy. $20 million of government subsidies went to the Yozma Fund, the other $80 million the government provided went to match other foreign and domestic firms, at 40%, to create their own venture capital funds in Israel. The VC companies could buy-back the governments equity stake over a 5 year period, and most did. The Yozma Fund privatized in 1997 and became the Yozma Group.[2]
Background
[edit]
Inbal is a government owned insurance company that underwrote and guaranteed up to 70% of losses for venture capital firms from 1992-1998. The Israeli Government helped start and fund business incubators and an R&D cluster during the 1990s. Many immigrants came to Israel during the fall of the soviet union in the 1990s post-Soviet aliyah and about ⅓ of them were skilled enigineers and scientists.[4]
Yozma funds
[edit]| Name | Est. | Capital | Foreign LP | LP Country | Portfolio | Exits | Exit Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eurofund | 1994 | $20M | Daimler-Benz, DEG | Germany | 14 | 7 | 50% |
| Gemini | 1993 | $36M | Advent Venture Partners | USA | 25 | 13 | 52% |
| Inventech | 1993 | $20M | Van Leer Group | Netherlands | 33 | 16 | 48% |
| Jerusalem Venture Partners | 1993 | $20M | Oxton | USA | 12 | 10 | 83% |
| Medica | 1995 | $15M | MVP | USA | 10 | 5 | 50% |
| Nitzanim | 1994 | $20M | AVX, Kyocera | Japan, Japan | 13 | 7 | 54% |
| Polaris (Pitango) | 1993 | $20M | CMS | USA | 19 | 13 | 68% |
| Star | 1993 | $20M | TVM, Siemens | Germany | 27 | 15 | 56% |
| Vertex Holdings | 1996 | $39M | Vertex Int., Singapore tech | USA, Singapore | 29 | 16 | 55% |
| Walden | 1993 | $33M | Walden International | USA | 21 | 10 | 48% |
| Yozma | 1993 | $20M | None | Israel | 16 | 10 | 63% |
| Total | $263M | 217 | 122 | 56% |
Yozma 2.0
[edit]In 2024, the Israel Innovation Authority has launched a Yozma 2.0 with government funds of $155 million, looking to raise $700 million from private institutional venture capital investors, at a 30% match.[6][7]
Hebrew translation
[edit]Yozma translates from Hebrew to English as initiative.[8]
See also
[edit]- Genesis Partners
- Infinity Group
- List of Israeli inventions and discoveries
- List of venture capital firms
- Economy of Israel
- Start-up Nation
- Science and technology in Israel
- CPP Investments - Canadian Pension Plan
- Venture Capital Action Plan - Canada
- Baltimore Development Corporation
- Texas Emerging Technology Fund
- Investment banking
- Public–private partnership
- Silicon Wadi
References
[edit]- ^ https://www.researchgate.net/publication/24078427_Venture_capital_start-up_co-evolution_and_the_emergence_development_of_Israel's_new_high_tech_cluster
- ^ https://kenney.faculty.ucdavis.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/332/2019/12/IJIRD070303-KLINGLER-VIDRA.pdf
- ^ https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/total-immigration-to-israel-from-former-soviet-union
- ^ https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidyin/2017/01/09/what-makes-israels-innovation-ecosystem-so-successful/
- ^ "(PDF) VC Policy: Yozma Program 15-Years perspective".
- ^ https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-israeli-govt-launches-155m-yozma-20-vc-fund-1001485714
- ^ https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/hkncrizza
- ^ https://www.lawinsider.com/dictionary/yozma#:~:text=Yozma%20means%20initiative%20in%20Hebrew.