Israeli regulator grants DavidShield insurance co license

Alon Ketzef
Alon Ketzef

The DavidShield-PassportCard group is jointly controlled by founder Alon Ketzef and US insurance company White Mountains.

As reported by "Globes," the DavidShield-PassportCard group, jointly controlled by founder Alon Ketzef and US insurance company White Mountains has obtained approval to operate in Israel from the Capital Market, Insurance and Savings Authority, headed by director Dr. Moshe Bareket.

The new company, which is already reporting premium volumes of a small insurance company, will be led by chairman Eyal Ben-Chelouche, who spent 10 years as capital market director and was also a director in Migdal Insurance group, and CEO Ran Mizrachi. Ben-Chelouche has been on DavidShield's board of directors for years, since shortly after he left his position in the Capital Market Authority. Ketzef will continue as DavidShield's president, while Yoel Amir will manage the group's agencies.

Bareket announced today that he had granted a license to "a new digital insurance company," which will "operate digitally and enable policyholders and agents to acquire the policy, receive service, and settle various claims in real time, including by computer or smartphone." The company will operate directly with the public, and will also continue selling insurance through insurance agents.

The Israel Capital Markets Authority said that the new company, "would initially deal mainly with insurance against diseases and hospitalization (overseas travel, medical expenses, and relocation), and would later expand its activity." The "Globes" website revealed last week for the first time that DavidShield was becoming an independent insurance company. The new company's owners' plans to operate in the insurance sector as first revealed by "Globes" in August 2018.

DavidShield and PassportCard have until now operated as specialized insurance agencies handling sales, operations and claims for the insurance that they sold to an estimated 1.7 million customers. The group's agencies include leaders in the overseas travel insurance and relocation insurance market. The group has international activities, and the insurance policies that it has sold hitherto were issued by the Phoenix insurance company.

DavidShield began operating in 2000, while PassportCard was founded in 2014. DavidShield said, "The group operates in several global markets, including Australia, German, and other European countries. It provides medical services to its policyholders in over 140 countries around the world."

DavidShield is now joining two digital insurance companies that have received regulatory approval and are already selling insurance to the general public in Israel: Libra, controlled by Eti Elishkov, and weSure Insurance, controlled by Emil Vainshel and Nitzan Zeir Harim.

Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on January 19, 2020

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2020

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