Internet co Eyeblaster raises $30m

The money was raised entirely from private investors. No venture capital funds were involved.

Sources inform ''Globes'' that Internet start-up Eyeblaster Inc. recently closed a $30 million financing round, raised entirely from private investors. No venture capital funds were involved. This is one of the largest-ever financing rounds from private investors ever made by an Israeli Internet company.

BRM Capital managing director Eli Barkat and Koor Industries chairman Jonathan Kolber led the round, in their first collaboration. They were joined by Shlomo Dovrat, Harel Beit-On, Nir Barkat (Eli Barkat’s brother), and Yuval Racabi. Two months ago, Kolber announced that he would take a year’s sabbatical beginning in September.

Barkat previously founded and ran BackWeb Technologies Ltd. (Nasdaq: BWEB). BRM made an early-stage investment in Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (Nasdaq: CHKP).

Eyeblaster was founded in 1999 by president and CEO Gal Trifon and VP R&D Ofer Zadikario. Trifon was previously an R&D executive at VCON, and Zadikario is an expert in designing servers, databases and Internet applications architecture, who previously worked for Intel Israel. He built the company’s R&D center in Israel

Eyeblaster has raised $10 million from private investors since it was founded, but is now profitable and has not raised money since 2004. Proceeds from the present round will be channeled to speed up the company’s growth.

Eyeblaster’s customers are online advertisers, e-commerce sites, online publishers, PR firms and media agencies. Two years ago, the company refocused its products and began to supply servers as well. The company says more than 500 ad agencies partner with it.

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on March 21, 2007

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2007

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