7 Authority. Despite the ongoing war and soaring interest rates globally, Israeli exits in 2024 have surged to USD13.4 billion up to December 8th, a 78% rise, as PwC explained in a recent analysis in financial magazine Calcalist. As Gilad says: “The commercial collaborations between Israeli and Japanese companies continue in relatively similar numbers as compared to pre-October 7th era.” “Japanese investors contributing to over 40 deals since late 2023, particularly in health-tech and AI,” adds Masato. “Investments by Japanese companies in Israel increased from the late 2010s, reaching a record high of approximately USD3 billion in 2021,” agrees Hiroyuki Iwamura at Bird & Bird, which opened a Tokyo office in September 2024. Hiroyuki adds: “Many investments have been in the field of IT and semiconductor technology, as well as cyber, automotive, pharma, and agri-tech. Notable transactions over the years include Mitsui’s investments into Autotalks, Kalture, Scadafence, Kaiima and Phytech, Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma’s acquisition of Israeli pharmaceutical firm Neuroderm for USD1.17 billion and Sony’s acquisition of Altair for more than USD200 million. Softbank has also invested some USD200 million in Israeli companies including in OurCrowd.” “The most significant Japan-Israel transaction in recent months was the multi-hundred-million-dollar investment of Japan’s Softbank in the Israeli cybersecurity company Wiz,” adds Gilad. The collaboration with this Israeli company, which rejected a USD23 billion offer from Google, is expected to establish Wiz as a major player in cloud security in Asia. “Entrepreneurs are increasingly eager to partner up, blending Israel’s innovation strengths with Japan’s market stability,” says Yanay Geva, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of One Line Group, a consulting, BD, and investment banking firm specializing in penetrating the Japanese market. “In 2023 Japanese investments accounted for 13% of foreign investments by volume and 5% of all foreign investments in Israel,” he adds, pointing out that “there are over 100 Japanese MNCs operating in Israel engaging in investments, R&D centers, and local offices.” Gilad adds: “All major Japanese trading houses have offices in Israel, such as Mitsubishi, Itochu, Mitsui, Sumitomo, and Toyota Tsusho. Companies such as NEC, Fujitsu, NTT, Sompo and Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance also opened offices in Israel. The number of Israeli companies with offices in Japan is growing, particularly Israeli startups in the areas of cyber and automotive. The most active areas are cyber security, health-tech, fintech, automotive, food-tech and agriculture-tech.”
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjgzNzA=