Israeli fund Generation Capital, founded by Yossi Singer and Erez Balasha in partnership with the Viola group, has completed an initial NIS 230 million financing round, sources inform "Globes." The fund will focus on investments in infrastructure and energy: electricity, natural gas, transportation, water, franchise construction, etc.
A number of investment and private concerns in the Israeli market took part in the round, led by funds operated and managed by Psagot Investment House Ltd. and Poalim IBI Underwriting and Investments (TASE: PIU). The fund is currently negotiating investments in a number of assets.
Simultaneously with nailing down these first investments, Singer and Balasha are planning to raise more capital through a share offering on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) during the coming year. If this offering is successful, Generation Capital will become the first ReIT fund operating in infrastructure in Tel Aviv. A number of commercial, office, and residential real estate ReIT funds are already listed on the TASE, including Reit 1 and Megurit, and two TASE-listed real estate companies, Azorim Investment, Development and Construction Ltd. (TASE: AZRM) and Aura Investments Ltd. (TASE:AURA) recently announced their intentions to found their own ReIT funds and hold IPOs for them.
Yossi Singer is a former CEO of Granite Hacarmel, which was the controlling shareholder in Sonol, Supergas, Via Maris Desalination, and Tambour Ltd. (TASE:TMBU). Before that, he headed the Giza-Singer-Even group, one of Israel's most prominent business consultation firm, in which he led infrastructure projects.
Balasha has ben CEO or CFO in leading energy, transportation, and environmental companies, including Granite Hacarmel, GES, the desalination facility at Palmachim, and CityPass. He was also a financial advisor at TASC providing consultation about infrastructure to the state and companies/
The other partner in Generation Capital, the Viola group, manages $2.8 billion in assets. Founding partner Harel Beit-On said today, "Israel's unprecedented momentum in infrastructure investment has major investment potential in addition to making a huge contribution to Israeli productivity and economic growth."
Singer and Balasha said, "The government in Israel has made investments in this field a top priority. Unprecedented investments in this sphere are expected over the coming decade. We intend to become a large and leading infrastructure concern in Israel. We have seen the importance and potential in making this area accessible to the Israeli capital market, which has been almost totally uninvolved in infrastructure to date. The fund will be actively involved in the investments it selects, which will feature growth, upgrading potential, and obtaining substantial long-term returns."
Providing counseling in founding the fund were Advocate Nitzan Sandor and Advocate Avraham Well from the Fischer Behar Chen Well Orion & Co. law firm, the KPMG Somekh Chaikin accounting firm, financing consultants Roee Eizenman and Hagai Yedid from Everest Investment Banking, and Shay Ben Yakar from Leader Capital Markets.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on June 19, 2018
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