Capitolis raises $220 million, Eon in talks at $7.5 billion, and BridgeWise weighs a Tel Aviv IPO

Noa Some of the biggest banks on Wall Street now own a piece of the same Israeli-founded fintech. Capitolis has raised $220 million, with Citi leading, at a valuation of $1.9 billion.

Eli And TheMarker reports that Eon, the cloud backup company founded only in 2024, is in talks to raise money at a valuation of at least $7.5 billion.

Noa Good morning, it's Wednesday, the seventh of October. I'm Noa.

Eli And I'm Eli.

Noa Today: Capitolis turns its customers into investors, Eon's valuation could nearly double, BridgeWise weighs a Tel Aviv listing instead of an exit, and Covenant opens a missile factory in Germany.

Noa Capitolis first. Globes, CTech and Calcalist report the company has completed a $220 million financing. Of that, $120 million is equity, in a Series E round, and $100 million is debt. The round values Capitolis at $1.9 billion.

Eli The investor list reads a lot like its customer list. Citi, an existing investor, led the equity. New strategic investors are Bank of America, Nomura and Tradeweb Markets, and J.P. Morgan, Barclays, BNP Paribas, State Street and UBS came back. The debt comes from First Citizens Innovation Banking, formerly Silicon Valley Bank, Hercules Capital and Pinegrove Venture Partners.

Noa Last week we told you Capitolis agreed to buy the American securities lending firm eSecLending for $200 million. Today we know more about the money behind it. The company says the new funding will help it complete that deal.

Eli On the valuation, Globes points out that $1.9 billion is not a big jump from the $1.6 billion Capitolis was valued at in 2022. But it notes fintech valuations have fallen by about 60% on average since then, so holding and raising the number stands out.

Noa And the business? Globes says revenue grew 65% in the past year, and the company plans to reach operating breakeven next year. Globes also cites estimates, which the company has not confirmed, of $125 million to $130 million in revenue for 2026.

Eli The headcount is the interesting part. Globes says Capitolis has 200 employees, and that staff numbers have not kept pace with revenue, apparently because of heavy use of AI. With eSecLending's 120 people in the US, it will have 320, of them 60 at its development center in Tel Aviv.

Noa Founder and chief executive Gil Mandelzis told CTech that debt is much cheaper for the company, and that he believes in strategic investment.

Noa Next, Eon. TheMarker reports the cloud backup and data company is negotiating to raise hundreds of millions of dollars at a valuation of at least $7.5 billion. The round has not been announced, and TheMarker says the final valuation could still change.

Eli For scale, Eon was founded in 2024 and has raised $500 million so far, according to TheMarker. Its last round, in December 2025, valued it at $4 billion. So if this one closes as described, the valuation nearly doubles in less than a year.

Noa TheMarker did not name the investors in the new round.

Noa Now a rare move for a venture-backed company. Globes reports that the Israeli fintech BridgeWise is examining an initial public offering on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. It is at an early stage. The size, the valuation and the timing have not been set.

Eli BridgeWise was founded in 2019 and builds AI systems that analyze stocks, funds and bonds for banks, exchanges and trading platforms. Globes says it has raised about $35 million, including a $21 million Series A in 2024 led by SIX Group, which runs the Swiss stock exchange.

Noa According to company figures cited by Globes, it works with about 110 institutional clients and reaches around 25 million end users. In Israel, its clients include Bank Hapoalim, Leumi and Mizrahi Tefahot. It has about 130 employees.

Eli Why it matters. Globes says this would be one of the first Tel Aviv listings in years by a tech company that grew on venture capital, since the 2020 to 2021 wave of tech offerings faded. Recent Tel Aviv offerings have mostly come from traditional or mature companies. And market sources told Globes a Nasdaq listing isn't seen as practical yet, given the size it would need.

Noa The company told Globes it is examining different ways to support its development, and that no final decision has been made.

Noa Defense tech. Covenant, founded in 2024 by the Israeli-American entrepreneur Michael Kaufman and Ofir Dayan, opened a factory in Leipzig, Germany, this week, CTech reports. It covers more than 10,000 square meters.

Eli The plant will build Anthem, a long-range precision strike system for NATO allies. CTech says it carries a payload of more than 200 kilograms, against targets on land and at sea. Covenant has orders worth about $150 million, and is aiming to produce 5,000 missiles a year by 2028.

Noa The supply chain is the pitch to Europe. Less than 5% of the components come from outside Europe, CTech reports, and the goal is fully European sourcing. Covenant has raised over $250 million and is valued at more than $1 billion.

Eli It also has R&D and manufacturing in northern Israel, and a facility in Dallas, where serial production is set to begin in the first quarter of 2027.

Noa Now the quick round-up.

Eli Yesterday we told you Fidelity sold most of its NextVision stake. Today CTech reports the shares fell in Tel Aviv after the sale, and quotes a senior institutional investor who could not recall a fund like Fidelity cashing out just a year after buying in.

Noa Cyber stocks are at records. CTech says Palo Alto Networks, CrowdStrike and Fortinet all hit all-time highs, with Palo Alto closing at a market value of about $340 billion, as fears that AI would hurt software companies fade.

Eli Palo Alto's Unit 42 says an Iranian state-aligned group posed as Dubai Airports recruiters to plant malware on targets in Iraq, CTech reports. Unit 42 says the same group ran a campaign to harvest credentials from an Israeli entity in May and June.

Noa Israel's Tax Authority and police have arrested a crypto trader from northern Israel on suspicion of hiding tens of millions of dollars in trading, CTech reports. His lawyers say the matter belongs in civil court, and call the money laundering allegations far removed from reality.

Eli And HOT Group has completed the sale of HOT Mobile to Delek Israel, Keystone and Leumi Partners, at an enterprise value of about NIS 1.88 billion, Israel Defense reports. The carrier has more than two million customers.

Noa What to watch: whether BridgeWise goes ahead with a Tel Aviv listing. Globes says venture-backed software, fintech and AI companies have almost entirely stayed away from the local market in recent years, so a decision to list would show whether Tel Aviv can be a real alternative to selling the company.

Eli Follow Israel Tech Daily wherever you get your podcasts, and read more at startuptofollow.com.

Noa See you tomorrow morning.