Start-up PineApp announced today that Rony Zarom's Decima Ventures had invested $5 million in the company, at a $7-8 million company value, before money. This was the first external investment in PineApp. Private investors had previously invested no more than $250,000 in it. PineApp CEO Ilan Shaya said the company was breaking even.
Decima Ventures acquired the controlling interest in PineApp, and Zarom was appointed chairman of the company. Sources inform “Globes” that PineApp chose Decima Ventures and Zarom, despite receiving investment offers at higher company values from other investors, because PineApp believed that Zarom's experience was more important than another $1 million.
PineApp develops and markets solutions network and e-mail security solutions, especially against spam. Shaya and PineApp CTO and VP R&D Gabriel Marcos Mizrahi founded the company three years ago as a spin-off from an integration company.
Zarom founded Decima Ventures after his successful exit in ExaLink, sold to Comverse Technology (Nasdaq:CMVT) for $550 million in 2000. Decima Ventures manages $25 million and has invested in one company to date, Etagon.
Zarom said in response today, "PineApp is active in a large and growing market that research companies estimated was worth over $1.2 billion in 2003 and growing by 22% a year. PinApp has network and e-mail security solutions that have proved their superiority in the Israeli market. The company's main task will be to penetrate global marketing channels, especially in the US."
Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on October 10, 2004