Preview Newsletter
Olivia Intro
-
Shekel's Gains a Result of Strong Israel Economy: Finance Minister
Mar 6, 2017 | Reuters
By Steven Scheer
The strong shekel is not a crisis but rather the result of a robust economy, Israeli Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon said on Monday. -
Israeli Court Rules Against Peer-to-Peer Binary Options Exchange
Mar 6, 2017 | Finance Magnates
By Avi Mizrahi
More bad news for any binary options traders in Israel holding onto hope that a way will be found to keep the instruments legally available in the country. -
Leviathan Partners Close Development Finance
Feb 23, 2017 | Globes
By Nati Yefet
The partnerships in the gas reservoir have signed a $1.75 billion agreement with an international consortium of lenders. -
Defense Chief Lieberman: U.S. Warned of 'Immediate Crisis' With Trump if Israel Annexed West Bank
Mar 6, 2017 | Haaretz
By Jonathan Lis
The U.S. administration told Israel that annexing the West Bank would lead to an immediate crisis between the two countries, Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman told lawmakers on Monday. -
Palestinian Terror Suspect Killed After Opening Fire on IDF Forces
Mar 6, 2017 | Jerusalem Post
By Tovah Lazaroff
Israeli security forces killed a suspected Palestinian terrorist in Ramallah overnight, in an incident that sparked a street battle in which two Palestinians rioters were also wounded. -
US Congressional Delegation Announces Israel Visit to Study Moving Embassy to Jerusalem
Mar 3, 2017 | Independent
By Independent
A US Congressional delegation will visit Israel tomorrow to look into the option of relocating the American embassy to Jerusalem. -
UK to Launch Global Network of Tech Hubs After Israeli Success
Mar 2, 2017 | Jerusalem Post
By Sharon Udasin
After success of the British Embassy’s UK Israel Tech Hub, the United Kingdom will launch a global network of similar tech hubs, the government said. -
Germany Seeks Israeli Technology
Mar 6, 2017 | Globes
By Globes
The North Rhine-Westphalia Economic Development Agency (NRW) will visit Israel next month looking for new technologies.
Finance and Israel
Arab- Israeli Conflict
Technology News
-
Shekel's Gains a Result of Strong Israel Economy: Finance Minister
Mar 6, 2017 | Reuters
By Steven Scheer
The strong shekel is not a crisis but rather the result of a robust economy, Israeli Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon said on Monday.
"Israel's economy (in 2016) ended one of its best years ever and the strengthening of the shekel is a direct result of the strong economic data," Kahlon said, referring to a 4 percent growth rate last year.
The shekel ILS= last week reached an October 2014 high of 3.635 per dollar but has eased back to 3.70 following Bank of Israel intervention the past two sessions. It is also hovering near a 15-yaer peak versus the euro EURILS=.
Kahlon said Israel could not ignore the harm to exports caused by the shekel's gains. He said the state would allocate 100 million shekels ($27 million) for technological education and would encourage investment through accelerated depreciation.
Kahlon said the government needed a policy to strengthen exporters and increase productivity in the long term.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-israel-economy-shekel-idUSKBN16D11L?il=0
-
Israeli Court Rules Against Peer-to-Peer Binary Options Exchange
Mar 6, 2017 | Finance Magnates
By Avi Mizrahi
More bad news for any binary options traders in Israel holding onto hope that a way will be found to keep the instruments legally available in the country. An Israeli court has ruled in favor of the Israeli Securities Authority (ISA) which asked to stop the activity of Peer-to-Peer platform Fairtrade, the regulator has announced.
When it was launched in December 2016, the co-founders and co-CEOs of Fairtrade, Avi Gal and Yaniv Genzer, claimed that their activities were in accordance with Israeli law: “We offer a system of trade between people and don’t need a license in Israel as it’s P2P. The ISA is familiar with our activity and we operate according to a legal framework. The website operates only in Israel and is meant for Israelis only. The vision is to implement the P2P model at the expanse of the traditional broker model, on all finance products.”
The main argument being that binary options are not securities, and therefore the firm is not operating an unauthorized exchange as the ISA charges. The court has now rejected this and accepted the regulator’s position completely.
In its own announcement it was possible to see how the ISA basically took two contradictory positions on binary options in order to get this passed the court. The ISA says that binary options are dangerous and it has decided to ban them because they are not securities but actually betting in their nature. It then goes on to say that Fairtrade’s operation is illegal because it is offering a securities exchange with a proper license.
However, it is obvious that the ISA is not troubled by such minor details as it makes sure that anyone reading its announcements know that this is another step in its vigilant efforts to banish binary options from Israel, including a ban on international call centers.
The company commented to Finance Magnates today: “We respect the decision of the court. All we tried to do is to improve the way this market (OTC) is conducted. We still have the option to file a request for a securities exchange license and we are considering our future actions. For now the company has stopped its operations per the court ruling.”
http://www.financemagnates.com/binary-options/regulation/israeli-court-rules-peer-peer-binary-options-exchange/
-
Leviathan Partners Close Development Finance
Feb 23, 2017 | Globes
By Nati Yefet
The partnerships in the gas reservoir have signed a $1.75 billion agreement with an international consortium of lenders.As "Globes" estimated yesterday that they would, the partnerships with the rights in the Leviathan gas reservoir have signed an agreement for the $1.75 billion loan from a consortium of lenders to finance stage 1A of development of the reservoir. The lenders are a consortium of twenty institutions that includes both foreign and Israeli banks and investment houses.
Delek Drilling and Avner Oil and Gas LP (TASE: AVNR.L) CEO Yossi Abu said, "The financing deal is a breakthrough for mega-finance of infrastructure projects in the Israeli economy, and represents a further vote of confidence by both international and Israeli banks and financial institutions, led by HSBC and JP Morgan, in Delek Drilling and Avner in general, and in the Leviathan project in particular. The Leviathan project has taken a significant leap forward today. We shall continue to work towards making the gas flow from Leviathan to the Israeli economy and for export by the end of 2019."
http://www.globes.co.il/en/article-leviathan-partners-close-development-finance-1001177870
-
Defense Chief Lieberman: U.S. Warned of 'Immediate Crisis' With Trump if Israel Annexed West Bank
Mar 6, 2017 | Haaretz
By Jonathan Lis
The U.S. administration told Israel that annexing the West Bank would lead to an immediate crisis between the two countries, Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman told lawmakers on Monday.
"We received a direct message… imposing Israeli sovereignty [on the West Bank] would mean an immediate crisis with the new administration," Lieberman told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. "The coalition should clearly state that there is no intention to impose [Israeli] sovereignty."
The defense chief referred to recent calls by lawmakers, including by Miki Zohar (Likud), a member of the governing coalition, to annex the West Bank. "The two-state solution is dead," Zohar, told news channel i24 on Sunday, while insisting that the one-state alternative would be democratic even though Palestinians would not automatically be allowed to vote in elections.
"I'm getting calls from all of the world wanting to know if this is the position of the coalition," said Lieberman. "As far of my opinion is concerned, we need to separate from the Palestinians and not to integrate them. The decision to annex Judea and Samaria (the West Bank) would mean the integration of 2.7 million Palestinians in Israel."
Lieberman said he was not worried about the international community's reaction to Israel annexing the West Bank. "According to Israeli law," he said, the Palestinians would "have to receive at least residency status. That means that from the first day, 20 billion shekels just from the National Insurance Institute in unemployment benefits, maternity allowances and other payments. I'm not even talking about the budgets of the Interior Ministry, the Housing Ministry and other offices that will also go there."
Speaking about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, Lieberman shifted the blame to Hamas. "We can't have Hamas investing hundreds of millions of dollars in building tunnels and rockets and that we would pay from the taxpayers' money for electricity and water for the Gaza Strip," he said.
Lieberman also spoke of an incident in the West Bank, where Palestinians were filmed throwing rocks at Border Police officers. On Friday, one Palestinian was arrested after Palestinians threw stones at a Border Police vehicle in t town of Nabi Saleh.
The police force did not act as expected of them, Lieberman said. "You don't know if they are charging at you with a stone, with a firebomb or a hand grenade." He said the force should have followed procedure for arresting suspects, and the he would expect the force to "fire into the air and later to the legs."
"The fact that the masked men were unharmed is wrong," Lieberman said, noting that army Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eiskenkot agrees with his assessment.
http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.775465
-
Palestinian Terror Suspect Killed After Opening Fire on IDF Forces
Mar 6, 2017 | Jerusalem Post
By Tovah Lazaroff
Israeli security forces killed a suspected Palestinian terrorist in Ramallah overnight, in an incident that sparked a street battle in which two Palestinians rioters were also wounded.
The raid involved the IDF and the Border Police’s Counter Terrorism Unit, the Yamam. They surrounded a home where the suspect was staying.Police spokesmen charged that when the suspect, Basel Al-Araj, 31, saw them, he opened fire.
Security forces fired back, killing Al-Araj, a pharmacist from Bethlehem who is also a well known activist against Israel’s military rule of the West Bank.
Two automatic weapons, an M16 rifle and a Carlo submachine gun, were in the home where he had been staying, police said.
The spokesmen added that Araj, “was the head of a terrorist cell that planned to carry out against Israeli targets.” He had also purchased the weapons, the spokesmen added.
In response to the incident Palestinian rioters attacked the security forces, throwing stones at them, police said. The forces responded with gunfire, wounding two Palestinians in the lower parts of their body.
Video footage showed the street fight, that also included tear gas and stun grenades.
One Ramallah resident Sam Bahour wrote on his Facebook page, “It's 2 a.m. Heavy IDF presence all around house last 20 minutes.
“Every five minutes loud explosions heard. About six Israeli soldiers parked their jeep at large trash canister with lights off and are standing in neighbors driveway. Another few jeeps are on side street in front of our home. With the jeeps is a larger armored vehicle,” he wrote.
Last year, Araj was one of six Palestinians detained by Palestinian Authority security forces for allegedly planing attacks against Israelis.
Before their detention Araj, along with Haytham Siaj and Muhammed Harb, had ditched their identity cards and cellphone in Ramallah and gone to the surrounding hills.
Ten days later, PA Intelligence forces located the three and arrested them. According to PA security sources, the three had been armed with a makeshift gun and hand grenades.
PA authorities subsequently placed the Araj, Siaj, and Harb under administrative detention in addition to three others for their suspected involvement in planning the alleged attack.
On September 3, the families of the six administrative detainees protested the detainment of their family members, who they said were “kidnapped by the PA.”
Five days later, a PA court ordered the release of the six detainees.
Araj is also known for his participation in the 2011 in a non-violent civil disobedience demonstration, known as the Freedom Ride. Along with five other Palestinians, attempted to ride an Egged bus into Jerusalem, in an event styled after the African American freedom riders of the 1960s. He was also an active participant in demonstrations against Israel’s security barrier in the Bethlehem area.
Hamas lauded Al-Araj on its Twitter page stating: "The martyr Basil al-Araj who rose up after an armed clash with the occupation in Ramallah is an example of the conscious resistor, who called for resistance in his words and implemented it with his actions."http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Palestinian-killed-after-opening-fire-on-IDF-forces-in-Ramallah-483341
-
US Congressional Delegation Announces Israel Visit to Study Moving Embassy to Jerusalem
Mar 3, 2017 | Independent
By Independent
A US Congressional delegation will visit Israel tomorrow to look into the option of relocating the American embassy to Jerusalem.
President Donald Trump has previously said he would "love" to see the embassy moved from its current location in Tel Aviv. He made the comments during Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to Washington, and added: "We're looking at that very, very strongly, we're looking at that with great care, and we'll see what happens."
Critics have said the move, which Mr Trump first raised during his Presidential campaign, would damage the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.
US officials and Israeli Foreign Ministry sources had said that the incoming US ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, could be based in Jerusalem while the official embassy building remained in Tel Aviv.READ MOREWhite House calls on UN Human body to end 'obsession with Israel'Hundreds of academics have said free speech on Israel is under threatDamning report finds Benjamin Netanayahu at fault over Gaza
Israel annexed east Jerusalem in a move not recognised by the international community in the 1967 Six Day War, and both the Israelis and Palestinians claim the city as their capital.
Almost all countries’ diplomatic missions to Israel are located in Tel Aviv. The proposed move has been strongly criticised by Palestinian Authority officials including President Mahmoud Abbas, liberal Israeli groups, and the US’ allies throughout the Arab and wider world.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/us-embassy-israel-congress-delegation-visit-jerusalem-move-tel-aviv-david-friedman-ambassador-a7609946.html
-
UK to Launch Global Network of Tech Hubs After Israeli Success
Mar 2, 2017 | Jerusalem Post
By Sharon Udasin
After success of the British Embassy’s UK Israel Tech Hub, the United Kingdom will launch a global network of similar tech hubs, the government said.
Since its foundation in Tel Aviv in 2011, the UK Israel Tech Hub has facilitated more than 80 bilateral technology partnerships, valued at approximately £62 million, the British Embassy said Wednesday. The network, which will include five international hubs in emerging markets, will strive to develop partnerships among UK companies and local hi-tech firms.["Wednesday’s] announcement is further evidence that tech relations between the UK and Israel are stronger than ever, and are now an inspiration for the UK’s tech engagement around the world,” said Ambassador to Israel David Quarrey. “The UK Israel Tech Hub plays a vital role in forging a strong tech and innovation partnership.”
The network was launched as part the British government’s larger “Digital Strategy,” which is focusing on expanding digital skills in the UK. Administered by Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport Karen Bradley, the Digital Strategy also includes fin-tech (financial technology) competition, a business connectivity forum and £1 billion worth of funding to accelerate the development of British digital infrastructure.
“If you are living in the UK today, you use technology from Israel daily – in banks, hospitals, digital government services and even online shopping,” Quarrey said Wednesday. “Britain’s new Digital Strategy acknowledges the success of the hard work we’re doing to advance these relations and it sets a promising future for our tech cooperation.”
Among the 80 collaborations supported by the UK Israel Tech Hub have been deals between Britain’s RBS and Israeli cyber and fin-tech companies; a cooperation between the UK’s Dyson and the Israeli start-up BreezoMeter; and a partnership between pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline and researchers from Haifa’s Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, to co-develop new treatments.
Naomi Krieger Carmy, director of the UK Israel Tech Hub, expressed her enthusiasm that the British government “has recognized the unique potential of the model we have developed with Israel,” crediting the ambassador, Tech Hub chairman Haim Shani and the rest of her team for building a successful venture.
“We have grown this ‘startup’ over the past five years to a successful model which delivers significant business value to both economies,” Krieger Carmy said. “I look forward to working closely with colleagues in London and the five new locations around the world, to adapt and roll out the model and create a global tech network for the UK, with Israel taking a central position within it”http://www.jpost.com/Business-and-Innovation/Tech/UK-to-launch-global-network-of-Tech-Hubs-after-Israeli-success-483098
-
Germany Seeks Israeli Technology
Mar 6, 2017 | Globes
By Globes
The North Rhine-Westphalia Economic Development Agency (NRW) will visit Israel next month looking for new technologies.
North Rhine-Westphalia's GDP totaled €645 billion in 2015, more than the GDP of entire countries like Switzerland, Saudi Arabia, and Argentina, and making it the wealthiest state in Germany. Many companies from all over the world have recognized the opportunity, and are doing business there. Foreign investment in Westphalia totaled €190 billion in 2015, more than in any other German state. 18,000 international companies are already operating there, and the number is projected to grow in the coming years. Israeli companies and startups are now also being invited to partake of this huge bonanza.The North Rhine-Westphalia Economic Development Agency (NRW) will visit Israel next month in order to take part in the annual Axis Tel Aviv conference, where investors, funds, and leading global companies can meet directly with Israeli startups and entrepreneurs. The NRW representatives' goal is obvious: to encourage Israeli entrepreneurs to add Dusseldorf, Cologne, Dortmund, and Essen to their list of markets.
"The opportunity to meet with the economic leadership of one of the world's leading business regions is sometimes all that is needed, especially when they want and are ready to break through," explains Axis Innovation CEO Ed Frank, whom many entrepreneurs rely on to point to the world's next hot markets. After China, South Korea, and even Russia and Poland, Israeli startups are aiming at regions that are hungry for foreign technologies where competition is less intense. "Although Berlin and Munich are probably the first cities that come to Israelis' minds when they think of Germany, economically speaking, the strongest state is North-Rhine Westphalia, considered the most industrialized, populous, and wealthiest region in West Germany, from which its importance is derived," says Frank.
It is logical for an Israeli entrepreneur seeking a foothold in Germany to turn to major companies with which he is familiar, such as SAP, Siemens, and Adidas. He should know, however, that one of the secrets of German industrial growth, and that of North-Rhine Westphalia in particular is its foundation of small and medium-sized companies. 3.5 million companies in Germany, 99.7% of all companies there, are categorized as "mittelstand" (small and medium-sized businesses), and more than 80% of them have at most 10 employees. The top tier of these companies employs 500 employees each, and their annual revenues is at most €50 million, far below the billions of the giant corporation.
"In all probability, you have never heard the names of these companies, but they constitute the backbone and economic engine of Europe's strongest country. The wide range of products they produce are used and integrated in many industries in innumerable products, tools, and projects sold in Germany, Europe, and throughout the world," Frank points out. "As entrepreneurs, we frequently tend to dream about getting an investment or strategic cooperation with huge multinational companies, mostly from the US, but the chances of this are low, and the competition is fierce. Thanks to the bustling economic activity in the region, many companies are able to fit in with the economic activity and business of small and medium-sized German companies seeking to keep themselves up-to-date, innovative, and leaders in their field, even though they do not grow to the huge dimensions of the world's best-known super brands, such as Google or Apple, most of which grew in the US."http://www.jpost.com/Business-and-Innovation/Tech/Germany-seeks-Israeli-technology-482710
Finance and Israel
Arab- Israeli Conflict
Technology News
Add recipients
Suggested