High-Tech Zone and CAL Launch Digital Currency Wallet in Major Fintech Move
High-Tech Zone and credit card company CAL launched a digital foreign currency wallet enabling fee-free overseas purchases and multi-currency balance management.
New Fintech Partnership: High-Tech Zone and CAL Launch Digital Currency Wallet
The High-Tech Zone consumer club is launching a digital foreign currency wallet in partnership with credit card company CAL. The new service allows users to purchase foreign currency directly within the CAL app, manage balances in multiple currencies, and pay for goods abroad or on e-commerce websites without conversion fees at the time of purchase.
For non-bank High-Tech Zone cardholders, the foreign currency balance will be linked directly to their existing card and managed via the CAL interface. When making a payment abroad in a currency held within the wallet, the transaction will be deducted from the pre-purchased balance rather than undergoing a new conversion with every purchase. Additionally, users will be able to withdraw cash abroad using their balances.
Club members holding bank-issued cards through Bank Hapoalim or Mizrahi Tefahot will also be able to join the service via a dedicated card issued specifically for the wallet, with full support for Apple Pay and Google Pay.
Expanding Financial Services and Market Competition
High-Tech Zone and CAL are entering a crowded market that has gained significant momentum in recent years. Alongside major credit card companies, specialized players such as LAYA and PassportCard already operate in this space. Competition centers primarily on exchange rates, fees, and user convenience, offering a viable alternative to buying cash in advance or using standard credit cards overseas.
The digital wallet represents another step in transforming the consumer club card into an overarching infrastructure for additional financial services.
For High-Tech Zone, however, the launch holds strategic significance far beyond the product itself. The foreign currency wallet is another step in trying to turn the club membership into an infrastructure upon which additional financial services can be built. While the club's primary value historically stemmed from its collective purchasing power against retailers, industry data indicates it now holds another crucial asset: the ability to rapidly direct thousands of customers to a financial institution.
New Appointments and Environmental Innovation
Attorney Ronal Bibi has been appointed CEO of the real estate firm Ofek Holdings, which specializes in urban renewal. Over the past five years, he served as Vice President of Business Development at Metropolis. Meanwhile, Alexander Basnevich was appointed manager of the sorting plant at the Davidaim Park, and Shimi Meneshirov was named AI Lead at Israel Technologies.
In the environmental sector, i-EcoGuard, a company developing smart greenhouse sheets, won the "Israel Earth" prize of 1 million shekels, sponsored by Toyota Israel and the Union Group. After reaching the finals last year, the company returned to win the grand prize, which will be dedicated to expanding its development and establishing pilot sites across Israel.
Finally, artificial intelligence developer OpenAI is reportedly targeting a valuation exceeding $1.2 trillion in a new funding round following the launch of its latest advanced AI model.
