Israeli consortium with $100M to spend; Itchy trigger fingers for IPOs
OXFORD - Israel's Clal Industries & Investments Ltd. has pulled together a consortium of investors willing to commit $100 million to biotechnology companies. The investment group, led by subsidiary Clal Biotechnology Industries Ltd., intends to invest in pharmaceutical biotech companies in and out of Israel.
According to David Haselkorn, head of Clal Biotechnology, Clal (Tel Aviv) has contributed $30 million to the consortium. The other investors - Ampal-American Israel Corp., the Challenge venture fund, Tecno-Rov, Poalim Investments and entrepreneur Benny Steinmitz - each have committed $10-$20 million. "Although we have only invested in Israeli companies so far, we do have a mandate to invest in companies outside Israel and are currently evaluating proposals from France, the U.K. and the U.S.," Haselkorn said...