A Virginia incentives program has selected four Israeli medical device companies for economic and business support: Biological Signal Processing Ltd. (BSP), Medibell Medical Vision Technologies Ltd., Nicast Ltd., and Venousonics Ltd. The Virginia program aims at attracting young, interesting companies to operate in the state. Support is subject to due diligence, now underway at the companies.
The selected companies will be eligible for $100,000 grants from Virginia-Israel Advisory Board (VIAB) for setting up US representative offices in Virginia, and for $1.2 million in financing from a Southwest Virginia foundation. The companies will also be offered scientific and business support from the Carilion Biomedical Institute (CBI), the investment and development arm of Carilion Health System, the largest health medical organization in Virginia.
The Israeli companies will also receive support from the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech.
The selected companies are developing medical devices in their fields, holding their first financing rounds, and want to make their first breakthroughs in the US market. BSP has developed an advanced device for the diagnosis and monitoring of ischemic heart diseases, which is now undergoing clinical trials. Medibell has developed and sells imaging systems aimed for ophthalmology applications. Nicast is developing nanotechnology implants for repairing blood vessels. Venousonics develops and sells an ultrasound system for treating varicose veins.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on November 29, 2005