Dynamic Internet developer Zend raising $6m

Doron Gerstel, cofounder, president and CEO of Israeli start-up Zend Technologies , said the company was raising $6 million. He explained that Zend was negotiating with foreign venture capital funds, and Walden Israel would probably also participate. Walden Israel invested in Zend’s most recent capital raising rounds, and currently has a 21% stake in the company. Walden Israel principal Noga Kap said the fund would try to preserve the size of its holdings in Zend.

Zend develops and markets acceleration programs, which enable a large number of users to surf Internet sites simultaneously, while improving response time. Zend recently signed new contracts with German airline Lufthansa and the Lycos portal totaling $100,000. The company also reportedly signed a contract this year with Adobe, which will install Zend’s software solutions.

Gerstel said, “Zend will finish the year with $2.5 million in revenue. The company has had a positive cash flow since March 2002.”

Gerstel and CTO Zeev Suraski founded Zend in 1999. The company has offices in Germany and the US. Zend has 25 employees in its Ramat Gan development center. The company, which has a technology cooperation agreement with IBM (NYSE: IBM), has raised $5.8 million to date from Platinum Venture Capital Partners, Walden Israel, and private investors.

Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on December 30, 2002