Magenta Venture Partners, Israeli VC firm proclaims a fresh $100 million fund intended for early-stage startups. The fund’s first closing was executed in October 2018, while the second one is listed for 2019. Magenta Venture Partners is an equal partnership between Israely, Levitzky, and Mitsui & Co.

The fund concentrating on early-stage ventures in Israeli and Israeli-related technology startups in sectors like Automotive, Mobility, AI, Smart Cities, Industry 4.0, Enterprise Software and Fintech is driven by four partners. These include Ori Israely, formerly of Motorola Solutions Venture Capital & Giza Venture Capital, Hiroshi Takeuchi of Mitsui, Ran Levitzky, and Atsushi Mizuno from Mitsui’s investment arm.

About the new fund, Ori Israely, Managing General Partner & a veteran of the Israeli VC industry, says “Our name Magenta, is a blend of blue and red – the colors of the Israeli and Japanese flags. It signifies the strengths of Israel and Japan. our fund is financially focused, but we look to invest in startups that not only look for capital but also seek value driven by the team’s experience in Japan, EU and the USA. We also leverage our investors to analyze and validate investments, assist the portfolio, and help all the startups we engage during this process.”

Hiroshi Takeuchi, Managing General Partner of the fund, states "Investors in Magenta Venture Partners include Mitsui & Co. Ltd. and Koito Manufacturing Co. Ltd. who are looking to work with the fund to identify innovative technologies in Israel.

Magenta will also work on introducing benefits of cooperation with such LPs to maximize return on investments, expose LPs to innovation generated by our portfolio companies and also from our deal flow.”

“Magenta offers unique added value in Israel’s venture capital scene. Israeli entrepreneurs have a clear understanding that building a significant company requires a variety of products that are marketed not only in the west but globally including the east and Japan in particular", says Ran Levitzky, General Partner of the firm. He further added that all the investors in Magenta are large Japanese companies, provides significant added value to Israeli entrepreneurs and startups who aim to build global leading companies.

The fund is attaching Ron Shvili, former head of the technology centre for the IDF’s 8200 unit, to its advisory board. Shvili is currently the CTO & VP of Technology and Information Systems of Cellcom, a leading telecommunications group in Israel.

Speaking about the partnership, Yokoya, Executive Vice President, Koito Manufacturing Co., states, “Koito as the No.1 manufacturer of automotive headlights in the world is committed to the next generation of autonomous driving and smart cities technologies. For that, Koito will partner with Magenta to explore collaboration opportunities with startups in Israel through our investment in Magenta Fund. We’re fully confident in the team and delighted to partner with Magenta in Koito’s exploration of new technologies in Israel.”

“Mitsui has been engaged in venture capital investment practice around the world for decades, including 8 years of investments in Israel. Our partnership in the Magenta Fund is the proof of our commitment to this country which is one of the centres of innovation in the world, and we would further strengthen our investment and business promotion activities in this country from now on,” says Kikuchihara, Managing Officer & COO - Corporate Development Business Unit, Mitsui & Co.