Arison Investments was settling up with Hyperion for shares it sold on Hyperion's behalf last week.
A week after selling Bank Hapoalim (LSE: BKHD; TASE: POLI) shares for NIS 352.5 million, the Arison family is again accumulating shares in the bank.
In an off-floor deal, the Arison group bought 0.28% of Bank Hapoalim for NIS 43.75 million. Arison Holdings bought 3.5 million shares at NIS 12.50 per share, the same price at which it sold them on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange a week ago. The deal leaves Arison Holdings with 18.71% of Bank Hapoalim.
Arison Holdings bought the shares from Hyperion, the company owned by Lewis Ranieri and Scott Shay, two other partners in the controlling interest in Bank Hapoalim. After the deal, Ranieri and Shay own 2.52% of Bank Hapoalim.
Today's deal is in fact settlement of the arrangement whereby Arison Investments sold shares on behalf of Hyperion last week. A week ago, the Arison family sold some of its Bank Hapoalim holdings, together with Dankner family-controlled Israel Salt Industries (TASE: SALT). Salt Industries, Arison Holdings, and the other partners in the controlling interest signed an agreement to sell 4.2% of Bank Hapoalim to UBS (SWX: UBS) at NIS 12.50 per share.
Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on October 5, 2004