Wary pessimism prevails among Israeli venture capitalists, according to the Deloitte Brightman Almagor Zohar VC Indicator survey for the second quarter of 2012. 59% of venture capitalists expect 6-10 exits of at least $25 million each by Israeli start-ups over the next six months, while 41% of venture capitalists predict up to five exits.
64% of respondents believe that the economic situation will remain unchanged over the next six months, compared a third who believe that it will worsen, and the rest who believe that it will improve.
82% of Israeli venture capitalists believe that the government, especially the Office of the Chief Scientist, have a role in encouraging high-tech entrepreneurship. 36% of respondents believe that the Office of the Chief Scientist is a cornerstone for high-tech entrepreneurship, and 46% say that cutting the Chief Scientist's budget will hurt Israeli entrepreneurship.
Half of the respondents say that the aggregate market cap of high-tech companies on the Tel Aviv 25 Index, which exceeds NIS 25 billion, reflects the flourishing high-tech industry, and that the growth will continue. 24% of respondents believe, however, that the trend is only fleeting.
Deloitte Israel Technology, Media & Telecommunications manager Tal Chen said, "In view of the economic slowdown in Israel and the challenges facing the domestic venture capital industry, the state's role and responsibility are even more important in accelerating and encouraging entrepreneurship and in helping deal with the situation."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on August 14, 2012
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