Tech in Brief: Mexican Industrial Group Mexichem Establishes Innovation Hub in Israel

OpenLegacy raises $30 million for upgrading legacy computer systems

OpenLegacy, an Israeli-U.S. startup whose software helps companies create digital services from older systems, said Wednesday it raised $30 million in a funding round led by Silverhorn Investment Advisors. Other participants included CommerzVentures, the venture capital unit of Germany’s Commerzbank; C. Entrepreneurs, a venture fund controlled by BNP Paribas Cardif with Cathay Innovation; Israel‘s Leumi Partners; O.G. Tech Ventures, Prytek-GFS Group and RDC, a joint venture between the arms makers Elbit System and Rafael. OpenLegacy said $27 million of the proceeds would go into the company, including hiring 60 employees to join its workforce of 85. Sources estimated that the fundraiser was done at a $100 million valuation for the company, which began enjoying positive cash flow this year for the first time. The company automates the process of integrating older (legacy) computer systems quickly and without changing the underlying systems. Founded in 2013, it has raised $37 million to date. (Irad Atzmon Schmayer)

Mexichem launching innovation hub in Israel

Mexican industrial group Mexichem is establishing an innovation hub in Israel, building on this year’s acquisition of Israeli drip irrigation pioneer Netafim. The company has a team scouting for technology and startups that fit Mexichem’s main businesses: building and infrastructure, agriculture and data communications and basic materials, CEO Daniel Martinez-Valle said. The hub will also help develop new business models for the company’s customers and examine investment opportunities for Mexichem’s new corporate venture capital fund. “Israel will be a significant source of deals,” Martinez-Valle told Reuters Wednesday during a trip to Israel. He declined to provide financial details but said this would be a significant investment priority for the next five years, adding: “Israel is the priority for building innovation.” In February, Mexichem acquired 80%of Netafim, the world’s largest provider of drip irrigation systems, for $1.5 billion in cash and debt. The rest is held by Kibbutz Hatzerim. (Reuters)

About to be acquired by IBM, Red Hat is buying Israeli startup NooBaa

It’s about to be acquired for $34 billion by IBM, but that didn’t stop open source software company Red Hat from undertaking its own acquisitions. The company announced Wednesday it was buying NooBaa, a Tel Aviv startup developing software that enables businesses to manage their data more easily and access their various data providers. The price was not provided for the transaction, but Red Hat said Noobaa’s software will become part of its open source portfolio. “NooBaa’s technologies will augment our portfolio and strengthen our ability to meet the needs of developers in today’s hybrid and multicloud world. We are thrilled to welcome a technical team of nine to the Red Hat family,” said Ranga Rangachari, a Red Hat vice president. Noobaa was founded in 2013 and raised an undisclosed amount of capital from Israeli funds Jerusalem Venture Partners and Our Crowd as well as a strategic investment from Akamai Capital. (Irad Atzmon Schmayer)