The Israeli start-up platform Israeli Mapped in NY rang the opening bell to start the New York Stock Exchanges trading session last month at a festive event showcasing the strength of the Israeli high-tech community in the city.
Israeli Mapped founder and CEO Guy Franklin hosted the ceremony alongside NYSE president Lynn Martin and executives from leading Israeli start-ups, including WIZ's Assaf Rappaport, Taboola's Adam Singolda, AI21 Lab's Ori Goshen, Dazz's Merav Bahat and others.
NYSE has been using an opening and closing bell to signify the start and close of its daily trading sessions since 1985. There is a physical bell and an automated ringer that sounds each day.
Israeli Mapped in NY was established to help showcase Israeli successes to the city and the world and connect Israeli entrepreneurs to local partners so they can expand in New York. Two years ago, it established an investment arm focusing on investing in Israeli companies in Series A funding rounds.
"The number of Israeli companies in New York has experienced significant growth in recent months due to market conditions," Franklin said. "Companies that have raised funds should be here, and those that are finding it challenging to raise funds in the current market conditions understand that to achieve quicker results, they need to expand here and focus heavily on New York."
According to Franklin, New York is home to more than 400 Israeli start-ups.
Start-Up Nation Central's report earlier this week showed that private funding in Israeli companies has hit a five-year low, and investor participation has plummeted to a nine-year low.