Israel's social-economic cabinet has approved the sale of UAV developer and manufacturer Aeronautics Ltd. (TASE: ARCS) to government-owned Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. and Israeli businessman Avihai Stolero for NIS 850 million. The cabinet approval follows the agreement of the Government Companies Authority to the deal after checking out the details of the merger. Following the acquisition Rafael and Stolero will each have a 50% stake in Aeronautics. By bringing in Stolero as a partner, Rafael will avoid the tighter regulations to which government controlled companies are subject to. RELATED ARTICLES Aeronautics wins South American drone deal Israel Aerospace sees Rafael merger as inevitable Rafael, Stolero sign NIS 850m Aeronautics acquisition deal Following the acquisition, Aeronautics will delist from the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. Prior to the acquisition, Aeronautics was controlled by the KCPS, Beresheet, and Viola funds. The cabinet met without Minister of Welfare and Social Services Haim Katz who was legally barred from the meeting because he is a former workers committee chairman of Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. (IAI) (TASE: ARSP.B1). IAI had also wanted to buy Aeronautics but had only bid NIS 600 million compared with Rafael and Stolero's NIS 850 million. IAI's main interest in buying Aeronautics would have been to block Rafael's entry into the UAV drone market. Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on August 14, 2019 © Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2019
