Saudi-linked SoftBank invests heavily in Israel
The investment of SoftBank in Israel and the appointment of former Mossad Chief Yossi Cohen as its representative in the country might signal Saudi interests in Israeli technology.
The entry of the Japanese SoftBank, considered one of the largest venture capital firms in the world, to direct activity in Israel was only a matter of time. The firm has invested in Israeli high-tech companies, including AnyVision, eToro, Redis Labs and Trax, according to the investment database PitchBook. Another investment, apparently less successful, was in WeWork, co-founded by the Israeli Adam Neumann.
SoftBank has significant investments in cooperation with investment firms from the Gulf states, including Saudi funds, and the estimation is that the normalization agreements (Abraham Accords) Israel signed with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain hastened the process and brought SoftBank directly to Tel Aviv.
The commercial and economic connection between Israel and Japan has been on the rise in recent years, especially because of the stronger ties fostered between former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Netanyahu arrived in Japan in 2014 and Abe reciprocated with two visits, in 2015 and 2018. The government of Japan thereby delivered a clear message to the business sector to encourage business with Israel. Accordingly, the number of Japanese companies active in Israel increased from 24 to 92 in the past six years, and the scope of Japanese investment in Israel is on the rise despite the coronavirus pandemic, and the positive momentum continues.
The head of the Economic and Trade Mission at the Israeli Embassy in Japan, Daniel Kolbar, said, however, that the potential of commerce between Israel and the third-largest economy in the world is far from being realized, especially in light of Japanese interests in the Middle East and the effects of the Arab boycott, which is still present in certain places. Thus, the impact of the growing closeness between Israel and Abu Dhabi could also bring Israel closer to Japan.
