August 5, 2009
VC Firms Pitango Venture Capital, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and the Gemini Israel Fund Invest $8 – $10 Million in Israeli WiFi provider, WeFi
Based in Central Israel, WeFi announced today that it had raised $8 to $10 million in a round of funding from Pitango Venture Partners, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and the Gemini Israel Fund. Proceeds from the funding will go to maintain the company’s growth rate and build an infrastructure for large clients that the WeFi is currently having talks with.
WeFi was founded in 2005 and since then it has grown to the point where it currently employs over 40 people in both Israel and the United States. WeFi is a company that provides WiFi connections and software to aid WiFi connectivity with computers and wireless devices. The company’s software is unique because it detects all WiFi hotspots and qualifies them giving the user the information to find the best internet connection possible in areas where WiFi is available. Another benefit of WeFi’s software is that when one WeFi user is online, it will detect other WeFi users when they are online, allowing for WeFi users to be able to see if their friends are online as well.
Currently, the company’s founder Yossi Vardi sits on its board of directors along with other people involved with the company’s founding, who include the two brothers, Shimon and Tamir Shertzer, and Amon Kohavi.
Potango Venture Capital is a leading Israeli vc firm and it mainly invests in seed, early and expansion stage companies in the tech industry. Potango Venture Partners has been around for over 14 years and currently has over $1.3 billion of committed capital under its management and is also on the global stage with offices not only in Israel, but also in Silicon Valley as well. Some other companies in Potango’s portfolio include AeroScout, Axis Mobile, Go Networks, MobileAccess, E4X, Neocraft, and others.
Lightspeed Venture Partners is a vc firm that has a leading global presence and has over $2 billion under its management. The team at Lightspeed is large and spread over several countries with a strong presence in the United States with its headquarters in the Silicon Valley, but Lightspeed also has offices in India, China, and Israel. Lightspeed Venture Capital primarily invests in early stage companies within a broad range of different industries. Some other companies in Lightspeed’s portfolio include 99Bill, AMEC, AeroHive, Aprius, Bling Nation, CarDomain, and others.
Founded in 1993, the Gemini Israel Fund was created by the Israeli government through the Yozma Program with the intent to invest in Israeli entrepreneurs who are in the communications, wireless, consumer electronics, enterprise software, internet, and semiconductor industries. The fund primarily invests in seed and early stage companies. Some other companies in the Gemini Israel Fund’s portfolio include Contextream, Massive Impact, RADLive, Schema, Modu, and others.
For more information about WeFi, click here.
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