BlackBerry's CEO Visits Israel, Coincides With Major Microsoft Acquisition

Fresh after announcing its acquisition of Good Technology on Friday, BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ: BBRY)'s CEO John Chen traveled to Israel where he met with government officials to discuss the company's growth strategy in Israel.

BlackBerry is no stranger to Israel. The country is often dubbed as the "startup nation" due to its successful and leading edge startup culture that attracts interest worldwide.

Israel's Startup Advantage And BlackBerry

Back in April, BlackBerry acquired Israeli startup WatchDox, a file-sharing security company, for reportedly $100 million to $150 million. The acquired company was transformed into BlackBerry's first research and development facility in the country.

Chen, on Tuesday, met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The executive commented that Israel is viewed as a central locale for implementing the company's development and acquisition strategies.

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Furthermore, the Prime Minister noted that Israeli-based cybersecurity firms have raised approximately $250 million since the start of 2015, representing nearly 20 percent of total global investments in cybersecurity.

Chen was also invited to visit the country's national cyber park in the city of Be'er Sheva.

The Microsoft Coincident

Coinciding with Chen's visit, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) confirmed on Tuesday its acquisition of Israeli cloud cybersecurity startup Adallom. According to CNBC, while the two companies have yet to disclose the deal's financial aspects, it is expected to be "one of the largest" acquisition deals for Microsoft at a price tag of "quite a few hundred million dollars."

Microsoft is also no stranger to Israel, having acquired Aorato, another Israel-based cybersecurity startup that makes products specifically aimed at Microsoft users.

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