Hearst Ventures, an investment fund of US media and information company Hearst Corp, has closed its operations in Israel. Gil Kanani, the partner who leads the investment here, is expected to leave his position this August. Hearst is one of the largest media conglomerates in the United States, including Cosmopolitan Magazine, Esquire, the San Francisco Chronicle, and television channels that include ESPN and dozens of other local brands. It also owns Fitch, a rating agency.
Venture capital fund Hurst Ventures has expanded to additional countries over the past decade, establishing local businesses in Israel, the UK and China. Hurst Ventures appointed former Canaan partner investor Gilkanan as a local partner in Tel Aviv and led investments in several companies, including otonomo, via, simply and snappy.
So far, the company has completed a SPAC merger at NASDAQ but has lost 94% of its value, with the exception of OTONOMO. However, through the plan, IPO and Snappy enjoy growth as corporate gifting platforms despite being at stake between 2022 and 2023.
Industry sources do not believe that the closure of operations in Israel is necessarily an indication that Hurst Venture will halt investment in Israeli companies. Rather, the closure is part of a global move to close offices outside the US, but the closure of Chinese offices has not yet been announced.
“This is a difficult decision for us and will not reduce our commitment to the dynamic environment of Israel’s high-tech environment,” explained one senior partner at the Israeli Entrepreneurial Fund in email. “I look forward to continuing cooperation with my colleagues here.”
Hurst Ventures is the latest in a series of funds that expanded back operations in Israel. These include Samsung Next and Verizon Venture. At the same time, other foreign funding, including Sequoia, Cotue and Premier, have expanded their operations in Israel since the start of the war.
Published by Globes, Israel Business News – En.globes.co.il – April 17, 2025.
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