Early Years

Meir Shamir was born in 1951 in Kibbutz Be’erot Yitzhak, Israel. His family moved to Petah Tikva when he was a young boy and he completed his elementary and secondary education there. As is typical in Israel, Meir Shamir joined the Israel Defense Forces in 1969 and served in the 69 Squadron as a navigator. During his tour of duty, Shamir fought in the Yom Kippur War. After completing his IDF Service, Shamir attended Bar-Ilan University where he received his BA in Management, Business Administration, and Economics.

After receiving his degree, Meir Shamir joined Mivtach Insurance Company as an insurance agent. He was responsible for selling insurance products to local kibbutzim. However, with a powerful vision of the future, Shamir purchased 50% of the shares in Mivtach in 1981. Shortly after, he purchased the remaining 50% shares becoming CEO and the company’s sole owner. The company’s name was changed to Mivtach Shamir Holdings.

Mivtach Shamir Holdings

Under the leadership of Meir Shamir, Mivtach Shamir Holdings was transformed into a corporate giant for the future. Shamir sold off the company’s insurance business and transitioned into real estate, technology, industries and communications. Under his guidance, the company’s market value grew from around $5.6M in 1992 to $230M by summer, 2017.

Mivtach Shamir has grown to be an international powerhouse, with vastly expanded interests, including real estate investment properties and venture capital. Among the investments of Mivtach Shamir Holdings are Gilat Satellite Networks, Tnuva Food Corporation, Solbar, Alony-Hetz and Verifone Israel. The company is particularly focused on emerging medical technologies and biotech companies.

Global Investments

Mivtach Shamir Holdings began to internationalize its holdings, making a major investment in the Indian company Tower Vision Jersey (TVJ) in 2007. In the same year, Mivtach Real Estate, a Mivtach Shamir Holdings subsidiary, invested $13M in commercial real estate in Chennai, India. The project is a mixed-use real estate development initiative consisting of resort, office, commercial and entertainment spaces.

In 2015, Mivtach Shamir moved into cyber-security, making a $7M investment in the startup Nyotron, which built an early reputation for developing real-time, cutting-edge cyber-security tools able to defend against the latest threats.

Boards and Philanthropy

Meir Shamir serves on many of the corporate boards of the holdings of Mivtach Shamir. Since 2016, he has served as Director of Gilat Satellite Networks Board of Directors, as well as CEO of the corporation.

Meir Shamir’s passion for international investments is matched by his passion for giving back to the community. He supports several summer and day-care centers that serve at-risk youth living in periphery areas of Israel. Since 2012, he has led Taglit Israel, which connects young Jews to their roots.

Meir Shamir also is a supporter of ZAKA, a series of voluntary community emergency response teams in Israel, donating an ambulance to the unit in Petah Tikva in 2015.

In recognition of his leadership in the business community and generous contributions to helping underserved youth access higher education, Shamir was awarded an honorary doctorate degree from Bar Ilan University. University officials cited Shamir’s commitment to re-investing earnings into philanthropic causes, particularly in creating educational pathways for tomorrow’s leaders.