What You Should Know:
– OTV (formerly Olive Tree Ventures), Israel’s ‘digital health first’ venture capital firm closes $170 million venture fund to support innovative digital health companies worldwide.
– OTV also announced today a new China office and the appointment of Jose Antonio Urrutia Rivas as Head of Asia Pacific.
OTV (formerly Olive Tree Ventures), Israel’s ‘digital health first’ venture capital firm, today announced the closing of a fund with a total value of $170M. OTV is the only venture capital fund in Israel whose primary focus is digital health, specializing in supporting their portfolio companies reach maturity, refine execution, tackle regulatory hurdles, and ensure a global imprint on validated products.
“OTV’s goal for the upcoming period is to harness our expertise in facilitating the growth of digital health companies, and, with laser sharp focus, identify the market leaders of tomorrow,” said Alejandro Weinstein, General Partner, OTV. “Digital health technology is increasingly important for strained healthcare systems seeking to provide accessible and affordable treatment, especially to traditionally under-served populations. The Covid-19 pandemic elucidated the importance of digital products to the global healthcare ecosystem, but industry pain points predated the current crisis and clear solutions will be needed in the years to come.”
OTV Background & Investment Thesis
Digital health technology is a young yet high growth vertical, with a market that has grown 150% since 2017 and is expected to be a $540 billion dollar industry by 2025.OTV was founded in 2015 by General Partners Mayer Gniwisch, Amir Lahat and Alejandro Weinstein with the mission of finding entrepreneurs with the most innovative, disruptive ideas in the digital health arena, that improve and save lives, and enable them to build successful, impactful companies.
Prior to forming the VC firm, the team founded 7 successful companies that generated over $4B in gains. Together with Partner Manor Zemer, the OTV leadership team is comprised of investors with a wide range of backgrounds, encompassing healthcare, technology, private equity and financial services, and with experience in the US, LATAM, Israeli and Asian markets.
Over the course of the past five years, OTV has prioritized investment in digital health companies that develop cutting-edge solutions to today’s most pressing healthcare problems. OTV’s portfolio includes some of the world’s highest-profile digital health leaders, including TytoCare, Lemonaid Health, Emedgene, Scopio and Donisi Health.
New China Office & Head of Asia Pacific Appointment
OTV also announced today the appointment of Jose Antonio Urrutia Rivas as Head of Asia Pacific. Jose is a graduate of the China Europe International Business School in Shanghai’s MBA program, and previously worked at LarrainVial as the Asian Market developer. Equipped with a wealth of experience in the region, Jose will manage OTV’s new Asia Pacific office, based in China. The new office will complement existing branches in New York, Tel Aviv and Montreal, and will offer portfolio companies the opportunity to expand in a region where the digital health field is robust and well-developed.
“I am excited to lead OTV’s expansion into the Asia-Pacific region, which plays a vital role in the global digital health economy,” said Jose Antonio Urrutia Rivas, Head of Asia Pacific, OTV. “OTV provides a unique connection between West and East, linking portfolio companies to Israel, North America and Asia and enhancing cooperation between these different markets. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with the OTV team, whose investment experience in a wide range of fields makes them perfectly placed to develop and implement winning growth strategies for best in class digital health companies..”
