FIMI buys US co Aitech for $30m

Ishay Davidi  photo; Tamar Matsafi
Ishay Davidi photo; Tamar Matsafi

Aitech is a global supplier of rugged electronics systems.

FIMI Opportunity Funds, led by Ishay Davidi, is acquiring full ownership of US company Aitech, a global supplier of rugged electronics systems for the defense, aviation, and space industries. FIMI will buy 100% of the company's shares, which are held by a group of Dutch investors. FIMI is also likely to inject additional money into the company to support its accelerated growth.

FIMI's total investment in the acquisition will be $30 million, with most of this amount being given to the shareholders, and a smaller amount being injected into the company. Completion of the deal, which is subject to regulatory approval, is slated for the coming weeks.

FIMI senior partner Gillon Beck said, "Aitech has proven innovative capability in the development of new products, which are scheduled to reach the market in 2018, and its orders backlog for the coming years has grown significantly. The company has had to reject projects because of the strong demand for its products.

"The deal is another of FIMI's measures for implementing its decision to make investments in foreign companies, in addition to its investments in Israeli companies (95% of its investments to date), and center the foreign companies' activity in Israel, as it has done in the past. FIMI intends to consolidate the administration of the company, which will operate worldwide from Israel."

Aitech, which was founded in 1983, has annual sales believed to be in the tens of millions of dollars, and makes a profit. With its staff of 170 employees (100 in the US and 70 more in Israel), the company designs, produces, and sells computer systems, power supplies, communications cards, and other products. Its products are designed and built to withstand extreme conditions, such as extreme heat and cold, earthquakes, high radiation levels, etc. Aitech's customers include some of the world's leading manufacturers of space systems and aviation defense systems, such as Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd., and Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. (IAI) (TASE: ARSP.B1).

Aitech's products, which are installed in advanced air defense systems, military airplanes and helicopters, and space systems, are responsible for the operation of various critical systems. The company, managed by CEO Moshe Tal, is incorporated in the US, and operates at two main sites: one in California and one in Herzliya.

"We expect substantial growth in activity in the coming years"

Tal says, "Aitech is at an important breakthrough point. The company has developed a number of new products that are its growth engines, and its orders backlog has doubled, compared with the corresponding period in the preceding year. The fields of business in which Aitech is growing rapidly, including space, in which the company has unique know-how, constitute its main growth engine. We have no doubt that the transfer of the company to FIMI's ownership will enable it to take advantage of the growth potential in its market and its positioning in that market. We expect substantial growth in activity in the coming years, which will obviously be reflected in the company's results."

FIMI, founded in 1996, currently manages $5 billion in assets. The fund has acquired control of 87 companies to date, and has sold 56 of them in deals with an aggregate total of over $4.5 billion.

Published by Globes [online], Israel Business News - www.globes-online.com - on February 8, 2018

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2018

Ishay Davidi  photo; Tamar Matsafi
Ishay Davidi photo; Tamar Matsafi
Inflation  credit: Tali Bogdanovsky Unexpectedly low February CPI reading cuts inflation

While inflation in Israel in the 12 months to the end of February 2025 is lower than forecast, housing prices continue to rise.

Work on the Green Line credit: Bar Lavi Egged wins tender to operate TA light rail Purple, Green Lines

NTA awarded the tender to Egged, which already operates the Red Line, despite government ministry opposition to one operator for the entire network.

Yitzhak Tshuva credit: Gidon Levy and Tali Bogdanovsky Competition Authority allows Delek takeover of Isracard

The Competition Authority is considered the easier of the two regulatory hurdles that the deal must overcome, the other being the Supervisor of Banks.

David Amsalem  credit  Noam Moskowitz, Knesset Spokesperson's Office Rafael to pay state NIS 444m dividend

The minister in charge of the Government Companies Authority, David Amsalem, has approved the payment by the defense company.

Barak MX air defense system  credit: IAI IAI profit jumps 55%

Israel Aerospace Industries posted a net profit of $493 million for 2024, and ended the year with an all-time high orders backlog of $25 billion.

Amnon Shashua and Aviram Ziv credit: Eyal Izhar OrCam stymied by investor dispute with Shashua

Demands by institutional investors are blocking the visual and hearing impairment device developer's recovery plan.

Thu: TA 35 rises despite banks' weakness

Teva and Elbit Systems both rose strongly today.

El Al almost quintuples profit

The airline posted a net profit of $545 million for 2024, 4.7 times the profit in 2023, and an all-time high.

First International Bank of Israel CEO Eli Cohen  credit: Eyal Toueg First Int'l posts top return on equity

First International Bank of Israel's return on equity in 2024 was 19%, the highest among Israel's banks.

Matrix IT CEO Moti Gutman  credit: Idan Gross Matrix CEO Gutman among highest paid execs at TASE cos

Moti Gutman's total compensation cost in 2024 was NIS 23.7 million. Matrix posted 14.4% growth in operating profit.

Matrix Hq in Kfar Saba credit: Matrix Matrix to buy Magic in major Israeli IT merger

Magic will become wholly owned by Matrix in a triangular reverse merger. The combined company is expected to have a market cap of NIS 7.7 billion.

Bank Hapoalim branch  credit: Aviv Gottlieb Bank Hapoalim raising NIS 3b

The bank is offering two series of CoCo bonds, one of which is for 25 years, and 12-month commercial paper.

Ronit Harel Ben Zeev credit: Osnat Rom S&P Maalot Israel CEO: Capital market needs more women

Ronit Harel Ben Zeev talks to "Globes" about she came to work at the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, the Israeli economy and S&P Maalot.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich credit: GPO Yossi Zamir Israel's fiscal deficit narrows for fifth straight month

Record tax revenues and lower government spending due to the ceasefire and restrictions until the 2025 budget is passed have improved the fiscal deficit.

Ben Gurion Airport  credit: Shutterstock Ukraine war refugees skew Israel's migration figures

Many who left Israel in 2023 were recent arrivals from Ukraine and Russia - but even without them there was a large exit of the young and educated.

Bank of Israel credit: Shutterstock Israel's forex reserves jumped in February

Israel’s foreign exchange reserves at the end of February 2025 rose to $220.253 billion, an increase of $4.185 billion from their level at the end of January, the Bank of Israel reports.

Haifa Port  credit: Shlomi Yosef How Trump tariffs could benefit Israel

Israel's free trade agreement with the US makes it an attractive investment destination for companies seeking to preserve access to the US market.

Twitter Facebook Linkedin RSS Newsletters גלובס Israel Business Conference 2018