eBay CEO John Donahoe to make first visit to Israel

Donahoe will visit local eBay operations, and deliver the keynote address at the HTIA 2012 conference.

3 July 12 09:35, Roy Goldenberg

John Donahoe, president and CEO of e-commerce and online payments giant eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY), is to make a first business visit to Israel this September. The purpose of the visit is to promote and review the company’s Israeli operations, and to deliver the keynote address at the HTIA 2012 conference of Israel Advanced Technology Industries, which will take place from September 10 to 12 in Jerusalem.

In announcing Donahoe's visit, eBay said he would use it to highlight how the company’s Israel-based centers support eBay Inc. businesses around the globe. eBay Israel R&D centers operating from Netanya and Tel Aviv focus on structured data and on catalogs and innovations in social commerce. The Netanya center was set up after eBay bought Israeli company Shopping.com in 2005 for $634 million. The Tel Aviv center was set up on the basis of Israeli start-up The Gifts Project, which eBay bought last September for $10-20 million.

Donahoe will also visit thePayPal Israel center operating from Tel Aviv, which focuses on advanced risk sciences and online payment services for merchants and consumers. This center was set up after eBay bought Fraud Science, which specialized in prevention of financial fraud, in 2008 for $169 million.

eBay also has operations focused on forming innovative new ventures in partnership with the Israeli high-tech industry and local startups, as well as cross-border trade.

In anticipation of his visit to Israel, Donahoe said, “Israel is one of our industry’s leading hubs for technology innovation and talent. eBay Inc.’s investments in Israel have made significant contributions to the company’s global vision in commerce and payments, and I look forward to meeting Israeli startups, strategic partners and our local employees."

Aaron Mankovski, co-chairman of the Israel Advanced Technology Industries (IATI) and HTIA 2012 conference said, “The HTIA 2012 conference brings together global technology and business leaders for a series of insightful discussions on how technology and innovation is rapidly changing our everyday lives and the way we do business. We couldn’t think of a more respected authority than John Donahoe, who will share his vision on the global commerce and payments landscape."

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on July 3, 2012

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