Has the Israeli start-up juggernaut ground to a proverbial standstill? Exits in the first half of 2017 were valued at just 20% for the whole of the previous year. The value of an exit at US$34 million was considerably less than the past five years. To be blunt, the number of deals and the amounts are way down. Surely time to panic.

However, it would seem that there are explanations. New trends are emerging. The facts on the ground indicate much more.

First, the report was released by IVC. They point out that there is currently a general ‘hold-off’ globally in large investments. Second, and as confirmed by a senior partner in Ernst & Young, Israel is seen as a great place for new tech. However, there is a move to purchase for strategic reasons. Israel is not quite seen in that category, for now.

On the other hand, look what has been happening on the ground.

• “International cyber security giant Symantec Corporation announced that it is acquiring Israeli cyber security company Fireglass. Media reports in Israel say that Symantec will pay out $250 million.” For the record Fireglass was set up only 4 years ago. To date, it has secured US$20 million on investment.
• Narendra Modi became the first sitting Indian Prime Minister to visit the Holy Land. He came waving a very large cheque book, seeking to learn about innovation.
• As Prime Minister Netanyahu was finishing off with his Asian counterpart, he had to rush off to host the head of J. P. Morgan Chase, the largest bank in America. Jamie Dimon’s financial giant purchases around US$10 billion of technology annually. He announced that the he is looking to set up an r&d centre in Israel with about 200 employees.
• On a quieter level, a powerful delegation of ‘women leaders’ from Australia recently visited the country.  In a very telling summary, Bernadette Conlon summed up what she had learnt from her tour, especially in regards to promoting innovation:

Israelis understand the power of diversity, and how it adds value in the business world. Companies looking to launch international operations can easily find skilled labour in a matter of days. The country is packed with native English, French and Russian speakers. Gender diversity is also prominent, with around half the startups we visited led by women, many of whom are young and have families.

Measuring the trend amongst exists is useful. However, the numbers must be analysed in context and over the long term. For now, Israel’s journey as a start up nation is progressing very handily, and the country is open to all to learn from its achievements.