Israel-founded firms ‘making impact’ in New York State economy

Israeli-founded companies are making a “substantial impact” on the New York State economy by generating significant revenue and hiring New Yorkers, according to the findings of a study released by the New York – Israel Business Alliance.

The independent study, released Tuesday, showed that Israeli-founded companies in New York directly contributed $18.6 billion in revenue in 2018. The economic benefit to New York jumped to $33.8 billion when factoring in additional spending on goods and services in the local economy, representing 2.02% of the state’s Gross Domestic Product.

The 506 Israel-founded companies in New York State directly employed 24,850 New Yorkers and indirectly employed 27,502 when accounting for the additional demand for local goods and services, the study said.

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When looking at recent growth trends, the study found that from 2014 to 2016, Israeli companies secured $3.5 billion in venture capital funding and, in 2016 alone, were responsible for more than 20 percent of the total capital raised in New York State.

From 2016 to 2018, the growth continued. During those years, Israeli-founded businesses had a 9.5% year-over-year growth for direct revenue generated, while the rest of the state grew by 4.2%.

In addition, Israeli-founded businesses added new jobs at double the state’s rate: Israeli companies saw 2.5% job growth while the rest of the state had 1.2%.

New York State is home to five Israeli-founded unicorns – startups valued at $1 billion and above: Compass, a real estate tech firm, Lemonade, an online insurer, Payoneer, a financial services company, Taboola, a content discovery firm, and WeWork, the co-working space developer.

From 2009 to 2018, 436 Israeli-founded companies opened and maintained offices in New York State, the report said.

“For anyone who has spent time in New York over the past decade, it’s evident that Israeli businesses are flourishing here,” New York – Israel Business Alliance founder Aaron Kaplowitz said. “For the first time, we’re able to quantify their impact and use data to help create additional jobs and generate more revenue across New York State.”

The aim of the New York – Israel Business Alliance is to create economic opportunities between New York State and Israel.

Stax Inc., a global market research firm, conducted the study.