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The “How”

What can I invest in?

Accredited investors and non-accredited non-investors alike can invest in a wide array of investments, ranging from Israeli stocks offering dividend payments, to secure Israeli government bonds, through inflation-protected corporate bonds paying fixed quarterly interest payments, to Exchange Traded Funds tracking to market Israeli indices. The choice of how secure the portfolio is to be (or how risky) is entirely up to the account holder in consultation with our licensed Portfolio Management personnel.

Israel's national exchange offers all the major business sectors offered in other markets around the world, including: technology, real estate, industry and manufacturing, communication, biomedical, agrotech, insurance, finance and banking, commerce and services, chemical/rubber/plastics, food, transportation, etc. Of particular interest is the defense industry and oil/gas exploration sector, given Israel’s recent large-scale discoveries of these commodities. Companies in these and other sectors are listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. Additionally, many Israeli technology companies are listed on Nasdaq.

Types and size of accounts

Do I need to know Hebrew to invest?

How much does it cost to hold an Israeli investment account?

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There is one central Exchange in Israel where all securities (bonds, stocks, ETFs, mutual funds, etc.) are traded. There are 24 member institutions holding seats on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) that are allowed to facilitate transactions for individual and institutional investors. The TASE members are either investment brokerages, banks or insurance companies. Some of these firms offer services for independent and managed accounts for individuals, and others only service institutional investors. Only a select few brokerages offer investors from abroad investment accounts with full-service in English.

Having served many hundreds of clients over the past ten years, Wise Money Israel has determined that the English speakers are best served by opening their investment account at one of three recommended brokerage firms. Wise Money Israel assists investors in Israel and around the world to open and manage their Israeli investments, whether they be Israeli citizens/residents or non-citizens/non-residents. For help, contact us here or sign up for an investment account here.

Bank or brokerage?

Holding an investment account at a bank is expensive, compared with a brokerage firm. Banks tack on more fees than brokerages, and typically charge more in comparable fees and commissions than brokerages. Banks charge a variety of fees such as minimum transaction fees, account management fees, custodian fees, transaction cancellation fees, limit order change/cancellation fees, wire transfer reception fees, currency conversion fees, interest fees, dividend fees, cash withdrawal fees, etc. Brokerages typically charge only a small fraction of these fees, and when they do, you'll find the fee itself is much less. For example, the commission on a single buy or sell order will cost 0.6%-0.65% of the total transaction at the largest banks in Israel (Bank Hapoalim, Bank Leumi) with a minimum commission charge of 26-27 shekels ($8 USD). In comparison, investment brokers charge less than a quarter of that commission percentage, and in most cases the transaction minimum is between 2-5 shekels. At the same banks, the yearly account management fee is 0.6%-0.8% per year of the customer's account balance! This fee is also 75% lower at brokerages. Lastly, we have found that banks are usually less equipped to answer your investment questions, don't speak English, are often harder to contact, don't handle email, and will not be able to manage your money.

Which brokerage should you choose?

The majority of brokerages work only with institutional investors, but several are set up to also handle retail (individual) investors. These firms maintain online trading systems and reports in English and provide telephone/email customer support. These brokerages provide a good and convenient way to participate in the Israeli capital market through investing on the TASE, both for the small and larger investors. Client securities are held in the client's name centrally at the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange through one of these brokerages.

From our extensive experience facilitating client investment in Israel, we've found the best brokerages are: Interactive Brokers, Meitav Dash Trade and  IBI. These brokerages offer low commissions per trade and good customer service. Many Wise Money Israel clients hold their investments at these brokerages and have been satisfied with their service.  Each brokerage is set up to handle the needs of Israeli and non-Israeli investor and English speakers, and have English online interfaces for investment. Contact us for details on the rates Wise Money Israel has with each brokerage for the clients we manage.

What's the process?

Opening an individual, joint or organizational/nonprofit Israeli investment account requires filling out an application and for some countries providing identification. Wise Money Israel has helped hundreds of clients for over a decade open their brokerage account remotely via the Internet and also in person if/when the client is in Israel. Israeli and non-Israelis alike can open accounts.

Some of the above mentioned brokerage firms have a minimum opening account balance and other do not. You may wire your funds or transfer funds online with these brokerages, and one brokerage also accepts checks. Several brokerages pay interest on cash deposits when Israel's interest rate is sufficiently high. Funds can be withdrawn at any time from your investment account to your bank with a simple phone call or email as necessary.

Brokerage services offered

All investment brokerages Wise Money Israel works with offer the following features:

• Account application in English
• Online trading platform in English
• Telephone customer service (some also email and chat)
• Monthly/quarterly printed statements in English
• Trading in stocks, bonds, Exchange Traded Funds, mutual funds, options, and currencies
• Inexpensive wire transfer to/from your bank
• Inexpensive currency conversion, much less than banks
• Stock and bond information and online charting

In summary, investment accounts can be opened with a bank, insurance company or brokerage. Because of the fees and convenience, brokerages are preferable. You'll be able to invest easily yourself or utilize Wise Money Israel's investment management services at any of these brokerages. Start investing here!

To invite a speaker click here.

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An enormous number of inventions and innovations have come out of Israel in recent decades, more than from many larger, established nations combined. Israel is shining its light on the nations of the world.

Why are there are so many Israeli inventions? Some hints to this mystery might come from the fact that its population seems to be very creative and entrepreneurial.

Innovation involves change for the betterment of mankind, keen observation, thinking outside the box, systematic investigation and serendipity.

Israel has world-leading innovative companies in the fields of technology, transportation, information and communication, food and agriculture, medicine, surveillance and satellites, water, renewable and alternative energy, and security.

Today we’ll focus on a two areas of Israeli innovation - information technology and self-driving cars, and highlight the companies leading these innovations.

Lightning fast Internet speeds

There’s a new game-changing technology called G.Fast which is capable of providing incredibly fast internet over the wires you already have in your home.

Earlier this month, Israeli semiconductor company Sckipio announced a new G.Fast solution that can deliver both upload and download speeds of 750 megabits per second. That's 50 times faster than the broadband many have in their homes today.

But even that speed will be slow in comparison to the next generation of chips that could come within another year. These will provide double that speed for both upload and download (1.5 gigabits per second), Sckipio said. That's faster than anything Google Fiber offers today.

Previous demonstrations of G.Fast have shown the technology to be capable of 750 megabit download speeds, but upload speeds were significantly slower than that.
Equal upload and download speeds are becoming more important, as new technologies require increasingly fast upload bandwidth. Uploading 4K videos, using virtual reality or playing video games all require super-fast upload speeds to function properly. For example, uploading a 30 second 4K GoPro video would normally take five hours using today’s broadband technology, but using G.Fast, it would take only a few minutes.

Sckipio says the G.Fast technology will debut in the United States in 2016. It won't be available everywhere immediately, but Sckipio said a single phone company could roll it out to the entire country in just four years.

Phone companies are excited about G.Fast, because it allows them do deliver super-fast speeds without having to dig up holes in your yard to do it. Or, if you live in an apartment building, they can use the existing infrastructure to deliver fast speeds without having to rewire the entire building.

Multi-dwelling units like apartments are a particularly attractive target for phone companies. Many of those apartments are currently served by DSL Internet over phone lines. But that old technology is dreadfully inefficient: DSL can lose up to 90% of its speed by the time it gets to your modem. G.Fast loses just 5% to 10% during the same trip.

It also solves a problem of deploying fiberoptic cables everywhere, which was previously the only way to get super-fast internet speeds to customers. Bringing fiber to homes is expensive and time consuming (and sometimes requires a company to dig up your yard). Bringing fiber from the street to just to one home can cost $100,000, according to Sckipio.

By comparison, the boxes on the street that need to be installed to power G.Fast cost about $70,000. And the cost of bringing that to your home is $0, since it connects to the phone lines already installed in your house or apartment.

Founded in 2012, the Ramat Gan, Israel-based company with 50 employees develops award-winning standards-compliant G.fast modems, which offer better performance over existing copper wires by dynamically allocating the bandwidth in each direction in real time (Dynamic Bandwidth Allocation, DBA).

Self-Driving Cars

The race is on to get the world's first self-driving car on the road, and the world's biggest car brands - BMW, Tesla and Audi - have all turned to Mobileye, a cutting-edge Israeli start-up.

13 major car companies are all using the technology developed by Israel startup company Mobileye. The company started as a tiny startup, and boasts the biggest IPO in Israeli history (valued at $5.3 billion).

The native Israeli firm, which makes computer vision software and cameras that help cars avoid accidents, offers systems that include a windshield-mounted camera that takes pictures of what is in front of the driver. The images are processed and, in real time, a small device on the dashboard gives the driver audio-visual warnings.

The tiny camera is designed to prevent death and accidents by interpreting a scene in real time. The camera has its eye on the road when driver’s eyes may not be. The software application links to the steering system, and sounds an alert when the driver does something that may lead to a collision. It identifies cyclists and pedestrians, and sounds an alarm before a collision happens. It can also see speed limit signs and whether the driver is veering out of his lane, the first sign of driver fatigue.

The system allows the driver to make a mistake, but brings their attention quickly back to the job at hand. Australia is currently performing a trial of the system using its government vehicles. The technology can be retrofitted easy to any vehicle.

Now the firm is re-engineering the system to allow the driver to take their hands off the wheel. The key innovations are in the microchips Mobileye develops, and in the algorithms the system uses. “In addition to preventing collisions, the system must sense the road in great detail, including lane markings, curbs, barriers, obstructions, recognize a large vocabulary of traffic signs and red lights, determine cars distances, and be fault-tolerant to a degree unparalleled by today’s driver assistance systems,” says company Co-founder, CTO and Chairman, Professor Amnon Shashua.

One day this technology will likely allow us to take our hands off the wheel, and let a sophisticated computer system that never tires or makes driving mistakes, assist us to arrive safely at our destination.

How can I participate?

Some innovative Israeli companies are investable only via venture capital firms offering tens of millions of dollars to viable startups. But other Israeli innovations are developed by Israeli companies already listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. Israelis and non-Israelis alike - irrespective of residency and citizenship - may open a shekel-based investment account at Israel’s largest brokerage firms, and invest in these publicly traded companies directly in the Israeli shekel. Individuals, companies, organizations and U.S. retirement accounts may open accounts, enabling them to invest in Israeli stocks, bonds and mutual funds.

Sources: MarketWired, CNN, 9news, Mobileye

The post Israeli Innovation – Changing the World appeared first on Wise Money Israel.

Many investors want to invest in innovative Israeli startup companies before they go public. But some don’t have the high amounts of capital necessary to participate in a venture capital fund, and others don’t want the high risk associated with investing in a small private company with little regulatory oversight and financial transparency. But that all may change soon.

In a recent interview given by the Vice Chairman of NASDAQ, Mr. Proctor describes the strengthening of cooperation between the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) and the U.S. NASDAQ stock exchange. The Exchanges are discussing creating an Israeli stock exchange to allow easily investment in Israel startups on the TASE.

The recent interview in Israel was conducted by Ido Asayag from Funder, one of Israel's economic newspapers. Meyer (Sandy) Procter is the Vice Chairman of the NASDAQ, and is responsible, among other things, for the working relationship between the NASDAQ and other stock exchanges around the world. He is also advisor to NASDAQ's senior management group on various subjects including the financial industry, national and international regulation. Sandy joined NASDAQ in 2008 after serving as Chairman and CEO of the Philadelphia Stock Exchange (PHLX) and successfully led the restructuring of that stock exchange and its merger with the NASDAQ stock exchange.

Question: Sandy, thank you for honoring us on a visit to Israel. What brings you to Israel?

Answer: I come to Israel often for personal reasons (I have family in Israel) and business. This time I came to Israel to examine cooperation between NASDAQ and TASE, following a meeting of the heads of the NASDAQ with the Minister of Finance, Mr. Moshe Kahlon. The Minister of Finance emphasized to us the great importance he sees in globalizing the Israeli capital market, and in order to keep the center of operations of technology firms in Israel instead of transferring their operations abroad. He expressed concern over the phenomenon that many Israeli companies are literally exported abroad, and as a result the State of Israel loses jobs and growth. The minister spoke of the importance of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange as the generator of growth as it fulfills its purpose in the Israeli economy, which is to encourage competition with banks over sources of capital, and to contribute to economic growth. Mr. Kahlon encouraged the examination of cooperation to set up a joint enterprise with the NASDAQ stock exchange.
I believe that cooperation between the Exchanges can be a game changer and change the current situation in the Israeli capital market. In my estimation, there is now a special window of opportunity to jointly promote  a new market that meets the needs of growth companies and technology companies that are in the stages prior to a possible listing on the NASDAQ market. I believe this new market can be an attractive and unique market for Israeli companies, and in particular growth companies and high-tech companies, which would increase their visibility to global investors, who are already showing great interest in Israel. The high-tech industry in Israel is very important to the Israeli economy, and therefore there is great importance to diversifying its funding sources. The new common platform to both exchanges can facilitate the existence of an exciting market which will contribute to the growth of the Israeli economy, especially if we can help them refrain from an "exit" event too quickly, and continue to develop in Israel as international companies.

Question: I understand from your words why such a market is important to the Israeli economy. Can you explain to us why this is good for NASDAQ?

Answer: The NASDAQ stock market is a competitive stock market that operates in a very  challenging environment. We are always looking for new opportunities and further growth engines. Given the fact that almost 20% of the foreign companies listed on NASDAQ are Israeli companies, NASDAQ certainly sees Israel as an important growth potential for the future. A simple examination of the number of IPOs on the NASDAQ market in 2015 shows that various fields of technology are very prominent among these Israeli companies on the NASDAQ, and the proportion is very large compared to other capital markets around the world. Israeli technology companies are very interested us, and I feel proud to be part of the Israeli economy with about 90 Israeli companies whose shares are listed for trading on the NASDAQ market. My vision is to fill in the gaps through a new market which would be attractive to Israeli firms that do not today list on the the TASE nor the NASDAQ. The new market could enable Israeli companies to take advantage of both worlds: easier access to more sources of capital, an internationally-renowned stock exchange, dual listing of securities on the TASE and NASDAQ, and the use of NASDAQ's technology which is familiar and friendly to the investor. All these will facilitate the attraction of more investors from Israel and abroad and encourage liquidity on the TASE.

Interviewer: You're touching one of the critical points in terms of the Israeli market. Over two years ago I initiated the establishment of two committees: the Liquidity Committee and the R&D Committee. Regarding Research and Development companies, in the coming weeks a law will be discussed in the Knesset Finance Committee which will ease reporting requirements to allow English reporting, which would report using U.S. GAAP standards, and allow tax breaks designed to make the capital market in Israel, and especially the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, more attractive for them. The Liquidity Committee recommended a series of recommendations and foremost among them is restructuring the Israeli stock market similar to other global markets to make them more effective and more attractive. At the same time, TASE CEO Mr. Yossi Beinart and TASE Chairman Mr. Amnon Neubach are promoting new reforms to encourage liquidity, reducing commissions and the creation of appropriate infrastructure for international cooperation, such as a joint venture with the NASDAQ stock exchange.

Question: Why do you think that the completion of these steps, together with a joint venture with NASDAQ, are important to Israel?

Answer: Israel is a country of dreams, entrepreneurship and innovation. But the "start-up nation" isn't succeeding to become the "scale-up nation". It is a fact that many companies have chosen the path of "exit" (such as M&As) in the early stages relative to the global competition, and do not fulfill their potential of growth and profitability. Some of the reasons for this is the desire of developers to see cash from their initiative. The new market is designed to precisely meet this need  - to enable entrepreneurs to obtain sufficient financing so that they can grow and manage their companies. Financial support and the financing of these companies in their later stages (late stage) will serve everyone: entrepreneurs, investors, angel investors and venture capital funds alike. This will also help Israel's economy in general as well as facilitate employment in Israel.

Question: One of the important questions that arise in the discussion on the future of the Israeli capital market is the problem of the high fees of Israeli investors in the capital market, especially in comparison with developed capital markets like the U.S. What do you think could have an impact on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange trading fees through the cooperation with the NASDAQ?

Answer: I expect that our cooperation will lead to a significant reduction in commissions. But I want to emphasize that the drop in fees should not be because of this regulatory provision or that. I come from the United States where the business culture is to encourage competition and the war to the heart of investor, by reducing the costs of trade. I expect that cooperation, and the process of opening up the stock market to new Stock Exchange members through which transactions are executed on the TASE, from Israel and abroad, will lead to almost immediate results of increasingly fierce competition among the TASE member firms that will reduce the costs of trading. This is what happened on the NYSE, NASDAQ and other stock markets after undergoing similar processes.

Question: In 2008, the crisis in international capital markets also affected the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange and led to a decline in trading volumes on the TASE. Despite the improvement in trading volumes since, volume is still low. What have you done to tackle the problem of the decline in trading volumes in the U.S. and what do you suggest we do?

Answer: The phenomenon of the decline in trade volumes is correct for all capital markets, especially in Western capital markets. This was the case in the U.S. and on the NASDAQ. We at NASDAQ, among other things, expanded the supply of services that we offer, we increased our profit centers, including through various collaborations with some of the world's stock exchanges. In today's globalized world, these collaborations are very important  because of the need to increase investors' access to different markets. There is intense competition between stock markets and the decline in commissions for investors increased demand for investor-friendly technology and cheaper access to exchanges around the world. I am here because I believe that there is great importance to cooperation between the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange and NASDAQ.

Question: A few months ago, in one of our meetings on the technology industry in Israel, we spoke both about the high-tech industry in Israel and agreed that it considered, unfortunately, a "candy store". In our conversation, we talked about Israel being a nation of start-ups that supports R&D, training young people in the Army and elsewhere, and then sell their startups abroad. These startups are the "candy" for investors and it seems that investors around the world consider them low-cost "sweets". Can you expand on that?

Answer: I meant that the phenomenon of the "exit" is concerning from the standpoint of the Israeli economy. Its not for nothing that Israel is called the startup nation. It has the world's second largest concentration of innovation after the Silicon Valley. Like any market of growth companies, some develop and some make an early exit, and this is natural. But what is different in Israel is that most companies are sold to foreign investors too soon, and a new generation of new large companies isn't grown. Each such "exit" detracts from economic growth in the Israeli economy because these companies prevent themselves the possibility of their development as international companies located in Israel. These companies are seeking financing in the early stages when they are not yet ripe to raise capital on NASDAQ, and therefore they are sold as "candy at cheap prices." I believe that cooperation between our Exchanges can be an excellent solution for many Israeli companies. I also believe that the new R&D law soon to pass the Israeli legislature - thanks to the efforts of the Ministry of Finance - will allow, among other things, corporate reporting in English, reported under U.S. accounting rules and will engender tax breaks. These are very important to the success of the public offering of Research & Development companies in Israel.

Question: In an interview with Globes in 2009, you said there would always be a market for new technology. How do you explain the fact that the State of Israel - the startup nation - cannot leave these innovative projects in Israel?

Answer: This is not a simple question. I think it's related to the fact that the capital market in Israel is still evolving. There are good companies in Israel, but the business environment is still in initial development stages, that require, among other things, companies to develop appropriate skills for technology companies. Thus, for example, the field of analysis of high-tech companies in the first-stage is not sufficiently developed compared to that in the U.S. This is one reason I believe that cooperation between the Exchanges can be a motivating factor for the development of these skills, attracting international players such as underwriters, analysts, and global investors, and be a key for real change for the rapid expansion of the business environment. All of these factors are likely to cause companies to get better pricing estimates and stop the phenomenon of companies being sold too early and not remaining in Israel to develop into international companies.

Question: Based on your experience, your role at NASDAQ, and your expertise in international stock markets, you can detail for us the potential of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, and the challenges it faces?

Answer: The main challenges are: to open the Tel Aviv stock market more to investors in the world, to change the ownership structure of the stock market, allow the Israeli stock exchange to cope well with heavy competition with stock exchanges in the modern world, to increase the number of local and foreign members of the Israeli stock exchange, to use user-friendly and available technology, increase liquidity, create regulatory conditions similar to the world, such as the U.S. Jobs Act and the R&D Law, in order to attract more companies to raise capital on the stock exchange, to add financial instruments, and more. I believe that if the cooperation between the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange and NASDAQ begin to take shape, as I hope, these challenges can be met.

Question: How do you propose to do that?

Answer: The most important change, which to the best of my knowledge is being examined by the Israel Minister of Finance, is the globalization of the TASE. Such a change was made in all the world's stock markets the past two decades, including the NASDAQ, and is unavoidable due to fierce competition between stock exchanges in the world. I myself led the Philadelphia Stock Exchange in such a change. A large part of the problems on the TASE must face are similar to those we faced with the PHLX, including dominant controlling shareholders, liquidity shortage and operational inefficiency. The change in the Philadelphia Stock Exchange increased the number of members of the stock exchange, increased the volume of operations, and liquidity increased significantly, which led to cooperation with NASDAQ. The PHLX Stock Exchange today is effective and much more interesting [to investors].

Question: Three years ago the Israel Securities Authority initiated a "road map" that includes the easing of supervised entities and the removal of obstacles to market development. Among the reliefs were the extension of shelf registration from two years to three years, a waiver on iSOX (Israeli Sarbanes Oxley regulation and compliance) for small and medium-sized entities (SMEs), easing of reports requirements, shortening of reports, and certain exemptions to corporate governance. All of these were approved. In addition, in the coming months we will complete the legislative exemptions for new issues, reliefs for R&D firms, the providing of additional relief for SMEs and more. However, it has often been suggested that general regulation, and regulation of the capital market in particular, is to blame for the low amount of IPOs due to over-regulation since 2008. What do you think about that?

Answer: First, I hear that argument also in the United States. In fact, I hear it in all the world's capital markets where I travel. I'm a big believer in the importance of quality regulation. I also believe that it is impossible to ignore these claims and see what can be done. There needs to be regulation balanced with uncompromising enforcement. I know that the Israeli Treasury Department is pushing for such exemptions for SMEs, and other technology companies. These measures are correct and desirable, and such steps are being made also in the rest of the world, including in the United States.

Question: Any last words?

Answer: I believe in the Israeli economy, in the excellent people that are here, and in the amazing companies that are developing here. I'm excited about the possibility of collaborating with Israel.

Mr. Sandy Proctor from NASDAQ with Chairmain of ISA Professor Shmuel Hauser

Israel Securities Authority responds

Chairman of the Israel Securities Authority Professor Shmuel Hauser's response: Sandy, this is good news for us. I am convinced that it is a window of opportunity for making the TASE an international financial center for technology companies.

Source: Funder.co.il

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Investing in Israeli stocks and bonds is done on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE), Israel's single national exchange, though accounts at Israeli brokerages and banks. This is where Israeli corporations raise capital to finance investments and activities, and where the government bring the public into its companies as they are privatized. The state-of-the-art exchange is also home to the local investment community and securities sector.

Both Israeli and non-Israeli investors, from any country, may invest on the TASE online, and in English.

History of the TASE

Local trade in securities began in the 1930s, years before the formation of the State of Israel. Trade was carried out through the Exchange Bureau for Securities, founded by the Anglo-Palestine Bank (which became Bank Leumi Le-Israel) in 1935.

With the formation of the State of Israel in 1948, a pressing need arose to formalize trade in securities. In September 1953, a number of banks and brokerages joined forces and established the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.

Since the mid-1990s the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) has been adapting to meet the standards of the most advanced exchanges in the world. Physical trading floors, long abolished, have been replaced by a computerized system.

Structure

The TASE is a private company limited by guarantee. It is owned by its members, both banks and non-banking corporations such as brokerages, through which anybody may trade in the securities listed on the exchange. Trading is carried out between TASE members on behalf of their customers. The TASE operates under a license granted by the Minister of Finance. The Israel Securities Authority supervises the TASE’s activity.

TASE by the Numbers 

• Total Market Capitalization: $515 Billion
• Daily Trading Volume: $1.8 Billion
• 3-year Israeli Stock Performance: 37% (General Share Stock Index, 2013-2015)
• Mutual Funds: 1,386
• Stocks: 460
• Corporate Bonds: 600
• Government Bonds: 45
• Net International investors purchase of equities: $1.6 billion
• High-tech companies listed: 130 (55 biomed)
• Exchange Trade Notes (Funds): 638

Trading

Stock trading monitor

Trading of securities occurs every Israeli business day: Sunday-Thursday, between 9:00 a.m. and 5:35 p.m. Trading is divided into distinct phases of trading, with specific rules: pre-open, opening, continuous trading, pre-closing and closing auction. Market Makers began working on the TASE in 2003. Trading is performed via TASE member firms (banks, brokerages, insurance companies), who transmit orders to the central exchange on behalf of their customers. TASE members’ central computers are connected to the trading computer, so that branch employees can transmit orders online. Most TASE members enable their customers (investors) to transmit trading orders via the Internet and through other computerized means, in English or Hebrew.

Survivability and Backup

Extensive efforts have been invested in planning and constructing the TASE’s computer system, in order to ensure that it is always available for TASE members to transmit their customers’ orders quickly and efficiently, and to provide service without malfunctions and interruptions.

The TASE has established a sophisticated survivability structure for its computerized systems as well as the communications and electrical networks serving their system. The backup structure includes a “hot backup” facility located off-site, at a distance from Tel Aviv, at which trading and clearing can be carried out in the event that they cannot be performed on TASE premises.

Order Size

The minimum order size is the smallest trading unit in securities on the TASE. In equities, the minimum is one share; in warrants, one trading unit of a warrant; in convertible bonds, one NIS par value.

Circuit Breakers

As in all major exchanges around the world, when necessary, the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange exercises "price monitoring" and "circuit breaker" mechanisms in order to mitigate volatility on a given trading day. When the Tel Aviv leading stock index (Tel Aviv-25) fluctuates sharply, opening trading is postponed or trading is halted, as applicable.

Order Types

The following types of buy and sell orders may be submitted:

• Market orders (MKT) – A market order is an order submitted without a designated price limit
• Limit orders (LMT) – A Limit order is submitted with a stipulated price limit
• Limit-at-Opening orders  (LMO) – A Limit-at-Opening order is submitted with a stipulated price limit. A LMO order, or part of it, which is not executed during opening trading is automatically cancelled.
• Stop-Limit orders (STL) – A Stop-Limit order is a Limit order submitted with a condition attached
• Iceberg orders (ICE) – An Iceberg order is an order submitted in 3 portions for execution: the total volume, the first peak and an additional peak designated for display
• Fill or Kill orders (FOK) – A Fill or Kill order is a Limit order for full immediate execution. An order not executed in full or immediately is automatically cancelled and is not listed in the order book.
• Immediate or Cancel orders (IOC) – An Immediate or Cancel order is a Limit order for immediate execution, even if the execution is partial. An order, or part of it, which is not executed immediately is automatically cancelled and is not listed in the order book.
• Limit-at-Closing orders  (LMC) – A Limit-at-Closing order is submitted with a stipulated price limit,. A LMC order, or part of it, which is not executed during closing trading is automatically cancelled.

Financial Products

The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange offers a wide variety of investing options. All are traded electronically online. An interesting feature of the TASE is that Israeli corporate and government bonds, which have a 1 NIS minimum, are all traded online with small spreads and low commissions. This compares favorably to the U.S. market, where bonds are traded over-the-counter, incurring large spreads (hidden fee), high broker commissions, and high minimums. The following is a list of investment choices in Israel:

• Stocks
• Convertible Securities
• Fixed Income
  • Corporate Bonds
  • Government bonds
  • Structure Notes
  • Certificates of Deposit
• ETNs
• Mutual Funds
• Treasury Bills
• Index Options
• Stock Options
• Futures
• Currency Options
• Derivatives

Types of Listings

The following types of securities are listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange:

• Initial Public Offering (IPO)
• Follow-on Offering
• Dual Listing (usually with Wall Street exchanges - NYSE, NASDAQ or AMEX - or on the London Stock Exchange)
• Private Placements

Regulation

Israel’s single capital market exchange is strictly regulated by the following bodies:

• Bank of Israel
• Legislation: the Knesset
• Israel Securities Authority
• Ministry of Finance
• TASE rules and Regulations

Sources: TASE, Bank Leumi: data as of February, 2016

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Robotic technology holds great potential for performing spinal surgery and advancing neurosurgical techniques. Several spinal robotic systems have proven to be safe and reliable in the execution of tasks on a routine basis, and are commercially available. Mazor Robotics, an Israeli medical device company and manufacturer of robotic guidance systems - with its international headquarters in Caesarea and traded in shekels on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange - is positioned to fundamentally alter the paradigm of complex spinal surgery through an integrated, robotic platform called “Renaissance”. Complex spinal surgery is performed through an integrated, robotic platform, and therefore minimally-invasive.

Robotic Imaging System

The only imaging-based surgical guidance system cleared by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for spine and brain surgery, the company's Renaissance Guidance System transforms spine surgery from freehand procedures to state-of-the-art procedures, increasing both accuracy and favorable clinical outcomes. The clinically validated technology has been successfully used in both routine and complex cases in thousands of spinal procedures worldwide – including over 50,000 implants. Surgical treatment of the spine requires planning and precision crafted around each patient’s unique challenges and anatomy – a process Mazor streamlines with their robotics system. The system may be used for correcting spinal deformities, brain procedures, oncology biopsies and tumor resections, and others medical procedures demanding computer accuracy.

There are more spinal fixation surgeries annually than hip replacements and partial knee replacements combined. There are many existing clinical challenges in spinal surgery. Current spine procedures fail to provide predictable results across various case complexities, levels of invasiveness and surgeon’s level of experience. Current surgical procedures require a significant learning curve, incur an increased risk for misplacement and mistakes, and can require a restricted or even no line-of-sight access to the anatomical site.

The 3D Revolution

Current procedures depend on two-dimensional imaging to orient the doctor in three-dimensional surroundings. These make current spinal surgeries complex. According to the company, many surgeons have praised the 1.5 mm accuracy mechanical guidance provided by Renaissance, acknowledging the technology makes complex surgeries less challenging. Using Renaissance’s intuitive interface, surgeons can plan operations in a virtual 3D environment, creating a surgical blueprint for better accuracy.

Mazor’s spinal robotic solution make spinal procedures easier, requiring a much shorter learning curve for all doctors. While surgeon controlled, the robotic, computer-driven procedure increases accuracy, precision and predictability. Favorable surgical outcomes are reproducible, and procedure costs are reduced. Also, intra-operative exposure to radiation is minimized.

Increased Accuracy

Using innovative surgical robots enhances the surgeon’s performance in spinal surgery by increasing placement accuracy and reducing the neurologic (nerve) risk. The robotic system helps spinal fusion surgery where surgeons realign deformed spines by placing rods and screws to hold the spine in place while the bone graft and the bone knits together. Mazor’s robotic technology helps place those screws in the implants in a more efficient and precise manner, both in pre-operative and operative arenas. Surgeons use the system to plan out the surgery beforehand by imaging the spine in 3D, and simulating the implant and surgery using Mazor’s virtual modeling. That pre-operative plan is then used in the operating room with the robotic device and computer. The computer, along with sophisticated X-ray and 3D computer modeling software, facilitate the plan and execution, assisting the surgeon the do his or her job more accurately.

The Process

The system first images the body, creating a “pre-operative” blueprint of the spine and surrounding areas. Hardware is attached to the patient's back to guide the robotics, and the system is synchronized in 3D space to ensure accurate surgical execution. See the complete process in this video:

Start-up University Incubator

Israel Institute of Technology (Technion)

The company started with research in surgical robotics at the Robotic Laboratory of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at Israel's premier technology university, the  Technion (Israel Institute of Technology) in the 1990s. The company was founded in 2001 by Professor Moshe Shaham (Head of the Medical Robotics Laboratory of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at the Technion), and Eli Zehavi, a former Vice President of Engineering at Elscint (an Israeli technology company that developed, manufactured and sold medical imaging solutions, later sold to GE Healthcare and Philips Medical Systems).

Success in Business

Mazor’s robotic system has over 13,000 cases, showing proven accuracy (above 98%) and reproducibility. With a global presence in 18 countries, the $849,000 Renaissance robotics and computer system is being sold to and adopted by hospitals and surgery centers around the world. The system includes operation disposables costing only $1,500. Mazor also offers annual service agreements, surgical accompaniment and other services. The company reports consistent growth in its commercial installed base both in the U.S. and around the world. Mazor Robotics, an Israeli publicly-traded company, employs 150 employees.

Brain Surgery

Mazor Robotics continues to focus on new Research and Development (R&D) innovations. The company now also offers an approved brain module costing $129,000. This system allows the precise positioning of tools and implantable devices during brain surgery, aiding in biopsies and Deep Brain Stimulations (DBS).

Investable

The system’s gross margin is over 75%, which is good for investors. Its 40% recurring sales attest to the success surgeons and hospitals attribute to the system.

Though not yet profitable, this Israeli biomedical firm boasts a market capitalization of a 750,000,000 Israeli shekels (almost $200,000,000). The Israeli capital market clearly recognizes the potential inherent in the technology, and the growth potential in the medical markets. The stock has been listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) since 2007. Mazor shows a strong and growing balance sheet, with good cash reserves and low liabilities. Its stock is one of Israel’s 100 largest public companies, and part of the Tel Aviv 75 large-cap index. It can also be purchased as part of a Tel Aviv Biomed or Blue Tech index funds.

President Peres Visiting The Mazor Robotics Factory (photo by Assaf Shilo/Israel )

MarketWatch shows 2 analysts rating Mazor Robotics as "Hold", and 5 showing a "Buy" rating. This analyst on SeekingAlpha estimates a doubling of stock price over the next five years.

Stock Performance

Tel Aviv Stock Exchange

As noted above, Mazor Robotics' stock on the TASE has grown over 500% in the past four years. While tech and other stocks around the world and Wall Street have struggled so far in 2016 (down 9%-11%), Mazor has risen 7% (as of January 22, 2016).

Mazor Robotics, and other Israeli technology stocks, can be purchased on the TASE through an Israeli investment account, and held in Israeli shekels to add portfolio currency diversification.

Sources: Mazor Robotics, Wikipedia, Neurosurgery Register, YouTube, MarketWatch, SeekingAlpha

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"I will make rivers flow on barren heights, and springs within the valleys. I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the parched ground into springs." (Isaiah 41:18)

Modern-day miracles

"The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom. Like the crocus, it will burst into bloom;... Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert. The burning sand will become a pool, the thirsty ground bubbling springs. In the haunts where jackals once lay, grass and reeds and papyrus will grow." (Isaiah 35: 1-2,6-7)

Israeli technology

Largest in the Western Hemisphere - Israeli made

Several days ago, IDE Technologies dedicated the largest desalination plant in the Western Hemisphere – a facility that will produce some 190 million liters of water daily for the residents of southern California.

Providing a new source of water in a state that has long suffered severe droughts, the Claude “Bud” Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant will be quenching the thirst of roughly 10 percent of San Diego County, according to IDE. Employing advanced pretreatment and seawater reverse osmosis technologies, the plant is able to generate potable water of the highest quality while significantly reducing energy consumption.

The Claude Bud Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant in California

The plant, which will be operated by IDE, has created some 2,500 jobs and generated about $350 million for the local economy.

“Since the last major drought here a little over 20 years ago, the San Diego region has worked to conserve water as well as identify new water sources,” said California Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins.

In addition to the Carlsbad facility, IDE is currently part of another 10 projects in the United States and operates hundreds of facilities around the world, as well as three of the four largest desalination plants in Israel, the Israeli firm said.

Leading the world

Israel is considered a world leader in water recycling and has advanced in desalination and recycling water in recent years. According to released statistics, Israel recycles 70 per cent of its waste water and sewage.

IDE’s holds desalination seminars  in cooperation with the Israeli Water Authority, the Israeli Foreign Ministry, the Middle East Desalination Research Centre and the Centre for International Agricultural Development Cooperation in Israel to introduce the participants to modern desalination technologies and to train them in the correct design, operation and maintenance of water desalination plants.

Reverse osmosis in action at the IDE Hadera plant

Their seminars cover topics in both thermal and seawater reverse-osmosis membrane desalination and offered participants practical instruction regarding the operation and maintenance of large and complex desalination plants. Participants also visit the desalination plant in Ashkelon which IDE designed and built.

Israel has desalinization plants not only in Ashkelon (the largest seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) plant in the world), but also in Sorek, Palmachim and Hadera on the Mediterranean coast. Another is planned for Ashdod.

The Water Revolution

As California and other western areas of the United States grapple with an extreme drought, a revolution has taken place here in Israel. A major national effort to desalinate Mediterranean seawater and to recycle wastewater has provided the country with enough water for all its needs, even during severe droughts. More than 50 percent of the water for Israeli households, agriculture and industry is now artificially produced.

A pool overlooking the Ramon Crater at the Beresheet hotel in the Israeli Negev desert

With its part-Mediterranean, part-desert climate, Israel had suffered from chronic shortages and exploitation of its natural water resources for decades.

Israel has long sought solutions to the threat of drought. Commercial desalination began in the 1970s in the city of Eilat, on the Red Sea. The first desalination technology used there, in a short-lived pilot project, froze water to remove the salt, then melted it to make fresh water.

But Israel seriously embraced desalination in the late 1990s, after a particularly bad drought. The government then decided to build five new plants along the Mediterranean, as fast as it could.

The natural fresh water at Israel’s disposal in an average year does not cover its total use of roughly 525 billion gallons. The demand for potable water is projected to rise to 515 billion gallons by 2030, from 317 billion gallons this year.

The turnaround came with a seven-year drought, one of the most severe to hit modern Israel, that began in 2005 and peaked in the winter of 2008 to 2009. The country’s main natural water sources — the Sea of Galilee in the north and the mountain and coastal aquifers — were severely depleted, threatening a potentially irreversible deterioration of the water quality.

Measures to increase the supply and reduce the demand were accelerated, overseen by the Water Authority, a powerful interministerial agency established in 2007.

Desalination emerged as one focus of the government’s efforts, with four major plants going into operation over the past decade. With the fifth Ashdod facility, they will produce a total of more than 130 billion gallons of potable water a year, with a goal of 200 billion gallons by 2020.

A desalination plant was dedicated a number of years ago in Hadera. Among the largest of its kind in the world and the third largest in Israel, the plant uses reverse osmosis technology, which means the sea water does not have to be heated, as is done in larger plants in the world that are less environmentally friendly. The entire process of desalinating the water takes 35 minutes from the time it enters pipelines in the sea.

The mammoth plant covers more than 18 acres and actually is two facilities that can operate independently from each other. Together, they can provide 127 cubic million liters, or 33 million gallons a year.

Recycling wastewater

Israel has, in the meantime, become the world leader in recycling and reusing wastewater for agriculture. It treats 86 percent of its domestic wastewater and recycles it for agricultural use — about 55 percent of the total water used for agriculture. Spain is second to Israel, recycling 17 percent of its effluent, while the United States recycles just 1 percent, according to Water Authority data.

Nana vineyard

As an example, the Nana vineyard, which, like many others in Israel, is irrigated with recycled wastewater. Israel has become the world leader in recycling and reusing wastewater for agriculture. It treats 86 percent of its domestic wastewater and recycles it for agricultural use — about 55 percent of the total water used for agriculture.

How can I participate in this success?

How can an investor profit from Israel's prowess in water technology? A number of the private companies in the water technology space are owned by a few publicly-traded companies on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE). You can own a part of these companies by buying their shekel-denominated stocks on the TASE. IDE Technologies, for example, is owned equally by Delek Group and Israel Chemicals, Ltd. (ICL).

ICL, whose stocks are sold on the TASE, is a multi-national manufacturing concern that develops, produces and markets fertilizers, metals and other special-purpose chemical products. ICL also owns Larnaca Desalination Partners, a large Cyrpus desalinization plant operator, which IDE built. Additionally, ICL  owns many other chemical companies, including those extracting precious minerals from the Dead Sea (such as Dead Sea Works, Dead Sea Magnesium, Inc. and Lianyungang Dead Sea Bromine Co.).

The Delek Group, one of Israel's largest investment and holding companies, is one of the large cap components of Israel's leading stock index Tel Aviv 25 (comparable to the Dow Jones Industrial Average on Wall Street). It also offers corporate bonds for purchase. Delek Group is involved in  energy and infrastructure, with investments in upstream and downstream energy, water desalination and power plants. Subsidiaries Delek Drilling and Avner Oil Exploration own large portions of the recently discovered Tamar and Leviathan Israeli natural gas fields, which recently made Israel a world-player in the energy market.

Sources: Wikipedia, edie.net, IDE Technologies, New York Times ,water-technology.net, BibleDiscovered.com, GreenProphet.com, Embassy of Israel

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Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system

Israeli military companies are ranked among the 100 largest defense contractors in the world, according to weekly American magazine "Defense News". The magazine, that covers security industries around the world, recently published a report of the largest defense companies globally in 2015. There are four Israeli companies among them: Elbit Systems, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), Rafael and Israel Military Industries (IMI).

Both Elbit and IAI are public companies traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange in Israeli shekels. Reflecting its technology exporting success, Elbit Systems's stock has gained 51% in the past 12 months.

Unfortunately, Israel has many enemies set on its destruction. So Israel was forced to innovative and develop cutting-edge technologies in the defense and cyber security industries. The world's militaries continue to be impressed by Israel's prowess in defense technology, as recently demonstrated by Israel's Iron Dome missile defense system successfully defending Israeli cities. While some of these technology and defense companies are government-run, some are publicly-held companies with a long list of prestigious military clients around the world, including the United States.

Elbit Hermes 450 unmanned aerial vehicle

Israeli firm Elbit Systems was ranked in 29th place, IAI at 32, Rafael at 45 and IMI ranked 99. Having so many highly ranked defense contractors is unusual for a nation the size of New Jersey,  with only 8 million inhabitants (about a tenth of 1% of the world's population). The ranking was based on 2014 corporate income. Topping the list were American companies Lockheed Martin and Boeing, and arms manufacturer and aviation firm BAE Systems from the U.K.

Defense Minister Moshe Ayalon (left), IAI CEO Joseph Weiss

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) makes components, parts, and systems for military and commercial operations worldwide. It has three AA rated shekel-denominated bond series that can be purchased and held in an Israeli brokerage account. The state-owned company consists of BEDEK Aviation Group (commercial and military aircraft support), ELTA Systems (defense electronics), Military Aircraft Group (maintenance and manufacture), Commercial Aircraft Group (executive jets, engineering and hydraulics), and Systems Missile and Space Group. Its defense-related products are sold to about 70 countries, while commercial sales include such diverse customers as British Airways, General Electric, Lockheed Martin, and United Parcel Service.

Amos-4 Satellite

Last month, IAI Israel Aerospace Industries, in its first satellite export contract, sold a high-resolution optical imaging spacecraft to an unnamed government, IAI officials said. IAI developed the successful Amos line of communications satellites, used over the Middle East, Europe and the U.S.

Tel Aviv-based IAI is also introducing an all-electric version of its Amos telecommunications satellite line, Amos-E, which the company said is aimed at a market of customers needing 10-20 transponders to maintain an orbital slot. Amos-E, which IAI Space Division General Manager Opher Doron said could be built in three years, is already being bid in one of several satellite competitions IAI has entered.  Several companies are building all-electric satellites, which offer up to 50-percent weight savings over conventional chemical propellant, allowing customers to add more payload or use the weight savings to secure a less-expensive launch service.

Amos-E, an all-electric version of Israel Aerospace Industries' Amos telecommunications satellite line

Lockheed invested this year for the first time in Israel when it participated in the capital raising stage of Israeli start-up company Cybereason, investing $ 25 million. The American weapons giant seldom invests in start-ups, and this investment was due to the Lockheed's high sensitivity to cyber threats to its systems.

Sources: Calcalist, Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, Space News, Google, Wikipedia

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