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Meron Capital Closes $70M Fund to Target Fintech and Enterprise Tech

Meron Capital, a Tel Aviv-based venture capital firm, has closed a $70 million fund to invest in early-stage fintech and enterprise technology startups, according to people familiar with the matter.

The new fund, Meron's third, will focus on backing Israeli entrepreneurs building solutions for the financial services industry and the broader enterprise technology market. It comes as venture funding has slowed globally amid economic uncertainty, making successful fundraises an important signal of investor confidence.

"The team at Meron has a proven track record of identifying and supporting the next generation of transformative technologies," said one limited partner who backed the new fund, requesting anonymity to discuss private fundraising details.

Meron was founded in 2015 by managing partners Omri Benayoun and Eyal Niv. The firm has previously invested in companies like digital banking platform Lightico, workforce management software provider Salaryo, and fintech infrastructure startup Stoke Payments.

The new fund's limited partners include a mix of institutional investors, family offices and high-net-worth individuals, the sources said. Meron did not respond to requests for comment.

Venture capital investment in Israel reached a record $27 billion last year, according to data provider IVC Research Center, though the pace has slowed in 2022 amid a broader pullback in tech funding. Fintech and enterprise software remain bright spots, with Israeli startups in those sectors attracting significant investor interest.

"Meron has carved out a differentiated position by focusing on the intersection of financial services and enterprise technology," said one industry analyst who covers the Israeli startup ecosystem. "Their portfolio companies are well-positioned to capitalize on important trends like the digitization of banking and the need for more efficient business software."

The new fund comes as Meron's earlier vehicles have generated strong returns. The firm's debut 2016 fund has delivered a 3x cash-on-cash multiple so far, according to the limited partner. Meron's second fund, raised in 2019, is also performing well, the person said.