The four founders of Wiz are on their way to receive the McDonald's franchise in Israel

The four founders of the cybersecurity company Wiz — Assaf Rappaport, Yinon Costica, Ami Luttwak, and Roy Reznik — are in advanced negotiations to receive the franchise for operating the McDonald's chain in Israel. According to sources close to the matter, the talks are in their final stretch and the parties are nearing a signing. The deal has not yet been completed.

The four founders of the cybersecurity company Wiz — Assaf Rappaport, Yinon Costica, Ami Luttwak, and Roy Reznik — are in advanced negotiations to receive the franchise for operating the McDonald's chain in Israel. According to a report by Calcalist, the talks between global McDonald's and the group led by Rappaport and his partners are in their final stretch, and the parties are nearing a signing. Several groups competed for the franchise, but now the group of Wiz founders is the leading candidate. In the past, Rappaport's representatives denied the possibility that he would enter the McDonald's business, but progress has been made recently. The deal has not yet been completed. The move is expected to bring the four founders, who sold Wiz to Google for $32 billion in the largest exit in Israeli high-tech history, into one of the largest fast-food businesses in Israel. Each of the founders received an estimated $3 billion from the deal before tax. Global McDonald's purchased the Israeli operations in 2024 from Omri Padan, who held the franchise for over three decades. The purchase took place against the backdrop of a boycott imposed on the chain in various countries due to the war in Gaza and the benefits the Israeli franchisee granted to IDF soldiers. For Rappaport and his partners, this represents an expansion of their investment activities beyond the high-tech world. In September, Calcalist reported that McDonald's was among the entities that offered the Wiz founders investment opportunities. The four established a joint investment company after the exit, managed by Yotav Costica, Yinon Costica's brother. Alongside their investments in technology companies, Rappaport and Costica also led the acquisition of control in Channel 13 through the Merit fund, committing to inject $120 million into the channel within three years. Additionally, the fund purchased 60% of the digital group Israel Entertainment for 48 million shekels. If the current deal is completed, the business activities of the Wiz founders will expand into the restaurant industry through one of the world's most recognized food brands.