Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin addresses the daily coronavirus response briefing as US President Donald Trump listens at the White House in Washington, US, April 2, 2020. Photo: REUTERS/Tom Brenner/File Photo.

CTech – The US treasury secretary during the Donald Trump administration, Steven Mnuchin, and the former US ambassador to Israel, David Friedman, are looking to invest in Israeli high-tech through a new investment fund they have set up.

The two former officials are establishing a Tel Aviv office for their fund Liberty Strategic, seeking to invest in cybersecurity, finance, network solutions, and other investments. The fund is raising capital from various sources, including companies from the Gulf countries, and is expected to manage billions of dollars. Friedman will serve as the fund’s Israel representative. In the past, there were rumors that Yossi Cohen, the former head of the Mossad, is expected to join the fund.

In recent days, Mnuchin and Friedman visited Israel on a trip arranged by Yaron Carni, the founder of Maverick Ventures Israel. The Trump administration officials met with representatives of a few of Maverick Ventures Israel’s portfolio companies, including SafeBreach, Semperis, Rox Financial, Sharegain, Utilis, and Perimeter81. Maverick Ventures Israel was founded by Carni, and is run by managing partner Michel Abadi. It invests in companies in early growth stages and so far has invested in 36 companies.

Additionally, Mnuchin and Friedman met with Sagi Gidali and Amit Bareket, the founder of Israeli cyber company Perimeter 81. The company provides network solutions and secure online remote access. Mnuchin and Friedman asked to meet with the two entrepreneurs and inquired about the company’s next funding round.

Perimeter 81 was set up by Gidali and Bareket in 2018 and it has about 1,600 global customers, including Fortune 500 companies.