BRM | Investment Thesis & Preferences

01Investment Thesis

Portfolio-first, long-term-oriented investing across early-stage technology, early-stage life sciences, and (as of 2026) growth-stage technology, funded by BRM's own ongoing successes rather than a traditional fixed fund. Supports companies from seed through IPO with hands-on operational involvement.

Exclusion Criteria

Requires at least one Israeli founding team member; not a passive, purely financial investor -- expects portfolio-first alignment and hands-on partner involvement.

02Investment Team

EB

Eli Barkat

Chairman & Co-Founder

YR

Yuval Rakavy

Co-Founder

EB

Eran Barkat

Partner, Early-Stage Technology

AM

Alon Maor

Partner, Early-Stage Life Sciences

TA

Timor Arbel-Sadras

Partner, Growth-Stage Technology

AN

Arie Nachmias

CFO

HK

Hen Kletter

VP

TB

Tomer Barkat

Associate

03F4 Research Brief

BRM Research

Investment Thesis

BRM (also known as BRM Group / BRM Capital) is a Tel Aviv-based venture capital firm founded in 2010 by brothers Nir and Eli Barkat together with Yuval Rakavy, building on operating experience that traces back to 1988 when Eli Barkat co-founded BRM Technologies, an anti-virus company later acquired by Symantec. The firm's stated motto is "portfolio first": BRM emphasizes the long-term impact of a company over short-term investor returns, and frames itself as a hands-on, operationally involved partner rather than a passive capital provider. BRM describes itself as being "funded by its own ongoing successes" rather than operating a traditional fixed-size fund structure, which gives it flexibility to support companies continuously from seed through IPO.

Sector Focus

BRM organizes its investing around three dedicated verticals, each led by a named partner: early-stage technology (led by Eran Barkat), early-stage life sciences / medtech (led by Alon Maor), and, as of a newly announced growth-stage technology arm (February 2026), growth-stage technology led by Timor Arbel-Sadras, formerly CEO of LeumiTech and a managing partner at Viola Credit. Historically the portfolio spans fintech, cybersecurity, mobility, medical devices/digital health, AI, and enterprise software/infrastructure, with a particularly strong track record in Israeli medtech and fintech.

Stage Focus

BRM invests across the full company lifecycle -- from early-stage (seed, Series A) through growth-stage and pre-IPO rounds -- and explicitly maintains "flexibility and capital to support companies from Seed through IPO." The February 2026 launch of a dedicated growth-stage technology arm signals an intent to write larger, later-stage checks into companies with proven product-market fit and scalable business models, operating alongside the firm's existing early-stage technology and life-sciences platforms.

Check Size

BRM does not publicly disclose a fixed check-size range or fund size. Given its "seed through IPO" positioning and its historical role as a lead or co-lead investor across many rounds (including large late-stage rounds such as eToro), check sizes likely range widely from early seed tickets to substantial growth-stage investments.

Lead Tendency

BRM "frequently leads or co-leads investment rounds, though this is not mandatory," per the firm's own FAQ, indicating a flexible approach that adapts to the situation rather than a strict lead-only or follow-only mandate.

Recent Activity

BRM's portfolio company eToro completed its IPO on Nasdaq (ticker: ETOR) in May 2025 at a roughly $4.4 billion valuation -- the largest Israeli IPO in the U.S. since Mobileye's 2022 listing. BRM was one of eToro's largest shareholders heading into the IPO, with the Barkat family's holding group reportedly controlling roughly 9% of eToro's shares. In October 2024, portfolio company V-Wave, a heart-failure medical device maker, was acquired by Johnson & Johnson MedTech for an upfront payment of $0.6 billion plus up to $1.1 billion in additional milestone payments. Portfolio company Guardz, an AI-native cybersecurity platform for SMBs and MSPs, raised a $56 million Series B in June 2025 led by ClearSky with participation from Phoenix Financial, Glilot Capital Partners, SentinelOne, Hanaco Ventures, iAngels, GKFF Ventures and others; Guardz has continued into 2026 with roughly 300% year-over-year ARR growth. Most recently, in February 2026 BRM announced the formation of a dedicated growth-stage investing arm, appointing Timor Arbel-Sadras (formerly CEO of LeumiTech) to lead it.

Portfolio Highlights

Notable exits include eToro (Nasdaq IPO, 2025), Moovit (acquired by Intel, 2020), V-Wave (acquired by J&J, 2024), Check Point Software (Nasdaq IPO), Meta Networks (acquired by Proofpoint), Cloudify (acquired by Dell), FraudSciences (acquired by PayPal), Whale Communications (acquired by Microsoft), Altair Semiconductor (acquired by Sony), Degania Medical (acquired by Q Holding), and Oplus (acquired by Intel). Active portfolio companies span cybersecurity (Guardz), fintech (Liquidity, Meitav), medtech/life sciences (Rapid Medical, Antidote, Aquapass, Innoventric, Clinii, IKKO Health, Orvida), AI (enSights, AAI), enterprise infrastructure (GigaSpaces, Flytrex), and consumer (Faye, Vimi, Sweett, Pele, Engageli, OrCam, Shopper.ai).

Team

Eli Barkat, Chairman & Co-Founder -- Co-founded BRM Technologies in 1988 (later acquired by Symantec); over 30 years of entrepreneurial, investment, and executive experience in the Israeli tech and finance sectors.
Yuval Rakavy, Co-Founder -- Co-founder of the firm alongside the Barkat brothers since 2010 (with roots to BRM's earlier history).
Eran Barkat, Partner -- Leads early-stage technology investing.
Alon Maor, Partner -- Leads early-stage life sciences / medtech investing.
Timor Arbel-Sadras, Partner -- Leads the newly formed growth-stage technology arm; formerly CEO of LeumiTech (Bank Leumi's high-tech banking arm) and managing partner at Viola Credit.
Arie Nachmias, CFO -- Finance leadership for the firm.
Hen Kletter, VP -- Investment team.
Tomer Barkat, Associate -- Investment team.

Decision Process

BRM describes "flexible and independent decision-making, with direct ownership by the relevant partner," and customizes its diligence approach to each company and stage, emphasizing speed without sacrificing depth. This points to a partnership model where individual partners carry significant autonomy over deals within their vertical, rather than a centralized investment committee.

Founder Preferences

BRM states it invests globally but requires that at least one founding member be Israeli, reflecting the firm's roots and network within the Israeli tech ecosystem. The firm emphasizes long-term alignment ("portfolio first") and looks for founders willing to "think big and aim high" and "solve problems unconventionally."

Decision/Access Process

BRM's FAQ states plainly: "We work best through trusted relationships. The fastest path is a warm intro via a portfolio founder/exec or a co-investor we know," indicating warm introductions are strongly preferred over cold outreach.

Geographic Focus

Headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel, BRM invests globally but anchors its dealflow in the Israeli tech ecosystem, requiring at least one Israeli founding team member. The firm also partners with Meitav, a large Israeli investment house, for parts of its private-credit and asset-management activities.

04Selected Portfolio