Trivnet

About Trivnet

Trivnet, established in 1997 by co-founders Saar Wilf and Amir Galili, carved a niche for itself in the financial technology sector by developing a platform for mobile financial solutions. The company was situated in Netanya, Israel, a hub for technological development. Initially focusing on internet payment systems, the company strategically pivoted in the early 2000s to capitalize on the burgeoning mobile market, concentrating on payment systems for mobile applications and eventually specializing in mobile remittance and commerce applications.

The founding duo brought a blend of technical acumen and business leadership to the venture. Saar Wilf, a serial entrepreneur and investor, served in the Israeli Defense Forces' intelligence Unit 8200 and began his career as a developer and programmer. His journey is marked by the creation of several technology startups, with Trivnet being his first. His technical expertise spans finance, machine learning, and computer vision. Amir Galili, who held the roles of Chairman and CEO, provided the strategic leadership for the company and holds an MBA from Tel Aviv University.

Trivnet's core business involved providing a Mobile Financial Services (MFS) solution to Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) and banks. This platform empowered its clients to offer a suite of services to their customer base, including mobile banking, money transfers, commerce, payments, and remittance services. The business model centered on enabling these large institutions to enhance customer loyalty and open up new revenue streams by leveraging Trivnet's technology. The company fostered close relationships with leading banks, system integrators, and service providers to facilitate widespread adoption and integration of its platform.

The company's journey includes several key financial milestones, having raised a total of $35.5 million over three funding rounds. Its Series C funding round in February 2008 raised $6 million and included investors such as Star Ventures, CDIB Capital Group, Magma Venture Partners, and Singtel. The culmination of Trivnet's operations was its acquisition by the digital security company Gemalto on July 23, 2010, for an estimated $40 million. At the time of the acquisition, Trivnet and Gemalto had already collaborated on over 60 deployments worldwide.