Li Ka-shing fund leads US$10.8 mln Israel investment

Jeff Pao April 28, 2015 19:07

Ami Daniel (left), co-founder and chief executive of Windward, says Horizon Ventures's involvement presents his company with valuable opportunities. Matan Peled (right) is the company's co-founder and vice president. Photo: Horizons Ventures

Horizons Ventures, a venture capital fund founded by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing, said Tuesday it is leading a US$10.8 million strategic investment in Windward, an Israeli maritime data and analytics company.

Aleph, a Tel Aviv-based venture capital fund, is among the other investors, according to an e-mailed press release.

Windward is one of the two winners out of more than 20 candidates that presented their business plans to Solina Chau, person-in-charge of Horizons Ventures, in January in Israel, a source familiar with the situation told EJ Insight.

"Ship activity across the oceans fuels the global economy but is one of the last analog arenas," said Jason Wong, managing director of Horizons Ventures.

"The Windward team is revolutionizing this archaic system and bringing visibility to this critically important domain, advancing the global ecosystem,” he said.

MarInt, Windward’s satellite maritime analytics system, is widely used by many security, intelligence and law enforcement agencies worldwide, according to the press release.

The system analyzes Windward data and insights to preemptively identify threats before the culprits reach shore.

The company will launch a solution for the financial sector in 2015.

It includes ForeSea which will provide traders, investors and analysts with access to unstructured data, critical insights and untapped market opportunities.

Ami Daniel, co-founder and chief executive of Windward, said Horizons Ventures’ involvement will give the company valuable opportunities to transform the analog world.

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Jeff Pao

Chief reporter at EJ Insight

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