Proposals to give the government greater say in the selection of judges while limiting court powers worry investors
Jerusalem — After weathering recession and military conflicts, Israel’s hi-tech sector could be facing its biggest test yet as the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank removes a key funding source and a proposed judicial overhaul threatens the bedrock of corporate law.
There is also the risk of accelerating a brain drain. An estimated 100,000 Israelis already live and work in California’s Silicon Valley and many others have moved to Europe. In an industry of about 400,000 there are now about 6,000 vacant tech jobs, according to government data. According to the IVC Research Centre and LeumiTech, Israeli high-tech firms raised $1.7bn in the first quarter, down 70% from the $5.8bn in the first three months of 2022 and its lowest quarterly fundraising level in four years.
Initially, Balter thought the remaining 30% was lost but he regained access once regulators took over. “It would have been very painful,” he said. “Before [the regulators took over] I foresaw a scenario where we lost most of our operating cash.”Israel’s Bank Leumi said it was able to move $1bn back to local accounts before US regulators took control, about half the amount estimated to have been returned, according to the investors.
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