Roman Gold, founding partner of the Israeli Blockchain Association, has spoken out about the Blockchain industry in Israel. According to him, the Israeli blockchain industry is currently experiencing both a boost and a transformation. “We see unprecedented growth among blockchain startups, but on the other hand, many of them are skipping ICOs in favor of equity financing. Today there are fewer startup founders coming out of morally questionable markets, such as Forex, binary trading, and gambling. Instead, more institutional players are starting to enter the market. Thus, the market is going through self-purification.”
Most Israeli blockchain startups are concentrated in the Fintech (57 companies) and Protocols/ Core Infrastructure (37 companies) sectors. A large increase was seen in the Security sector, which accounts for 23 startups today. It is also worth mentioning that since the beginning of the year, 20 blockchain startups have ceased to exist.
“Israel has a good chance to strengthen its Startup Nation brand, as well as become the Blockchain Nation”, – says Gadi Isaev, Managing Partner of the Israeli Blockchain Association. “This is happening thanks to effective regulation and the close cooperation of many blockchain startups with educational and academic research organizations.”
The Israeli Blockchain Association expects the amount of blockchain startups to double in 2019, but also forecasts the role of academic structures in startup companies to increase, and expects the radical growth of “non-native” blockchain startups in A & B rounds. Those startups are currently going through a blockchain-transformation.
