Former NBA athlete Omri Casspi has secured $60 million for Swish Ventures, his latest venture fund targeting early-stage startups in cybersecurity, cloud infrastructure, and AI. The fund will invest $5 million to $7 million per deal, focusing on 10 companies led by seasoned entrepreneurs building market-defining technologies.

Swish Ventures follows Casspi’s earlier fund, Sheva Capital, a $36 million initiative launched in 2022. While continuing to oversee Sheva’s portfolio, Casspi stated there will be no further fundraising under the Sheva brand. He explained, “I’m fully hands-on continuing the growth of our companies.”

Several founders backed by Sheva, including Ophir Ehrlich (EON), Amiram Shachar (Upwind), and Gal Ben-David and Alon Arvatz (PointFive), are now investors in Swish Ventures. The fund also includes institutional backers like Sequoia Capital as an anchor investor.

Swish Ventures narrows its focus compared to Sheva’s broader investment strategy, reflecting heightened investor interest in cybersecurity and AI, particularly in Israel and the U.S. Israel’s robust cybersecurity sector accounted for over half of the venture capital raised by Israeli startups in early 2024, according to Startup Nation Central.

Casspi has previously invested in high-profile Israeli companies like Wiz, known for rejecting a $23 billion acquisition offer from Google, and EON, which achieved unicorn status within a year. Both companies highlight Israel’s strength in cloud security and its thriving ecosystem of serial entrepreneurs.

Joining Swish Ventures as an operating partner is Dana Alexandrovich, former COO of Microsoft in Israel, where she led sales operations across the Middle East and Africa.

Casspi, the first Israeli to play in the NBA, now manages approximately $125 million in assets across his funds. He is among a growing list of athletes, including Serena Williams and Stephen Curry, transitioning into venture capital to back transformative startups.

Featured image: Credit: Swish Ventures