By ARIEL SHAPIRATHE TEL AVIV skyline(photo credit: REUTERS)
The third annual Cybertech Exhibition and Conference will take place in Tel Aviv on January 26-27 at the Israel Trade Fairs & Convention Center new Pavilion 2. At the conference, there will be a start-up challenge and only one winner will be chosen out of the five finalists. Judges will hail from Glilot Capital Partners, JVP, Check Point, IBM and other hi-tech companies.Cybertech is the second largest cyber event in the world and this year Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior government officials will take part in the festivities.The aim of the conference is to create a link between investors, entrepreneurs and start-ups involved in the cyber industry. Participants, who will hail from 200 different companies, 100 of which are Israeli start-ups, will get the chance to hear speakers from leading firms and browse alongside all the new contraptions displayed by the Israeli start-ups.Legislative changes The Knesset Finance Committee recently approved a proposal submitted by Netanyahu and Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon that will amend the law regarding angel investments and encourage new investments in young Israeli start-ups.In an effort to preserve the hi-tech industry’s relative advantage, the Knesset voted to offer tax incentives that will help young companies develop innovative ideas and bolster them until they’ve grown larger. Startups oftentimes begin their initial stages of research and development without the necessary amount of capital to get off the ground.The government recognizes the importance of investments for young companies, and how beneficial hi-tech start-ups are for the economy in the short and long run.According to the new amendment, investors who invest in young start-ups that have been approved by the ministry’s Chief Scientist’s Office, will receive significant tax benefits.In addition, the amendment entitles startups in outlying areas to be considered startups for a full five years instead of only four years like companies in the Center. The committee gave its approval for this ruling to remain in effect for the next four years, and the finance minister is authorized to extend this ruling for an additional four years if the committee votes in favor of it.If you run a young start-up, have developed an interesting app or have a question, please feel free to contact info@social-wisdom.com.
