Germany-based telecommunications company Deutsche Telekom has earmarked €100m ($114m) for investment in Israel-based companies, The Marker reported yesterday.
The capital will come out of the €500m Deutsche Telekom allocated to corporate venturing subsidiary Deutsche Telekom Capital Partners (DTCP), which was launched in November 2014 to make both early-stage and later-stage equity investments.
The money is expected to be committed over the next five years. T-Venture, the company’s previous corporate venturing unit, is being wound down as a result, and follow-on investments in its portoflio companies will be made by DTCP.
DTCP’s investments in Israel will be led by Guy Horowitz, who took a general partner position at DTCP in July 2015.
Horowitz originally joined Deutsche Telekom in 2012 to head the company’s Israel office, before being promoted to managing director of Deutsche Telekom Business Development and Venturing in 2014.
Horowitz told The Marker that the lower valuations of Israel-based companies, compared to their peers abroad, made them particularly attractive propositions to corporate investors.