From Kibbutz to Tech Leadership: A Career in Mobility and Payments

The article profiles a 36-year-old Israeli executive, currently CEO of Pcentra, a company operating the Rav-Kav Online public transport payment system. Raised in Kibbutz Degania Alef, he faced early challenges with attention deficit disorder, which made traditional schooling difficult. After serving in the Paratroopers Brigade, he left the kibbutz, feeling constrained by its traditional structure.

He pursued a degree in Geo-Informatics at the Hebrew University, where he also studied Chinese. In 2016, he became involved with the Chinese bike-sharing company Ofo, managing its operations in Israel at age 26. Despite initial success, Ofo's global bankruptcy left them with thousands of bikes, which they then sold off.

Following Ofo's collapse, he helped bring the food delivery app Wolt to Israel, though he ultimately chose to become CEO of the scooter-sharing company Wind. Under his leadership, Wind captured 65% of the Israeli market within three years. He later managed the Israeli operations of Yango, a ride-hailing service owned by Russia's Yandex, and its delivery service Yango Deli, before resigning due to concerns over the company's Russian ties following the invasion of Ukraine.

He then joined Gett, a ride-hailing company, as head of operations. The events of October 7th significantly impacted him, leading to a period of reflection and a trip to Japan. This experience solidified his desire to build larger-scale transportation products and services. He eventually joined Pcentra, a global payment solutions and public transport systems company, as CEO in March 2026. Pcentra operates Rav-Kav Online in Israel and is exploring hybrid payment models for public transport, though dedicated cards still dominate the Israeli market.