Harel Insurance Investments (TASE: HARL) subsidiary Harel Investment House Ltd. (formerly Harel Capital Markets) is offering a savings plan with higher interest rates than those offered by commercial banks. The plan, called Atid Mavtiach (Promising Future), offers two investment tracks, with a minimum investment threshold of NIS 25,000. The money is deposited in a trustee account in a bank.
Harel Investment House general manager Gil Hod said this was an innovative product never before offered. "The plans were originally designed for paid-up insurance policies, to keep the money at home, but we discovered that they were also attractive for other clientele. We'll operate through insurance agents, and later, we'll market the products to defined target audiences."
Harel has decided to initially launch the products quietly, in order to test the system.
Depositors in the first track will receive a one-time cash bonus for the deposit, as part of future yields. At the end of the period, the depositor will receive guaranteed interest. The bonus will range from 2% for a two-year deposit to 10% for a ten-year deposit.
Money can be deposited for two, five, or ten years in index-linked or dollar-linked tracks. Annual interest on index-linked deposits made in January is 3.5% for two-year deposits, 4.1% for five-year deposits, and 4.9% for ten-year deposits.
Depositors in the second track will receive a fixed monthly sum. The principal is index-linked for the period of the savings plan, which can be five, ten, or fifteen years.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on January 25, 2005