The management of Israeli television station Reshet 13, Access, and WBD, have agreed on a change of control in the company. The management, headed by CEO Emiliano Calemzuk, will hold 74% of the shares, while the current owners, Len Blavatnik’s Access Industries and WBD, will remain with 26%. The company’s press release states that, after six years of supporting Reshet, Access Industries and its owner, Blavatnik, had agreed of a sale of the majority holding in the company. The purchase of the shares will be led by Calemzuk together with a group of Israeli and international investors from various fields, among them media, entertainment, and technology.
The press release states that the plan includes giving the employees an opportunity to participate in the ownership of the company, through options on shares, and that it will be carried out in the course of 2025. It also states that Reshet 13 will undergo restructuring with the aim of restoring it to profitability in 2026.
Sources inform "Globes" that at this stage the matter is the subject of an MOU between the parties, and that a binding agreement has not yet been signed. The value of the deal is not known, but neither are Reshet’s debts.
According to the information that has reached "Globes", there was surprise at Reshet at the announcement of the move, which was not known to many people in the company. According to sources who spoke to "Globes", in recent weeks Calemzuk has met investors with the aim of injecting cash into the company, after Blavatnik would not agree to do so. That process matured into the move now reported: "an investor group" that is buying the company.
Calemzuk seeks to keep control in his hands. He knew that if Nir Zuk succeeded in buying the channel, he planned to bring back its former CEO Avi Ben-Tal, who conducted negotiations on his behalf, to run it.
"The management and all the employees of Reshet and News 13 express gratitude and appreciation to the shareholders, especially to Mr. Len Blavatnik, for supporting the company during a crisis period, and in general, and for the faith placed in the management and staff in anticipation of the next stage that awaits the company," the announcement states.
"Access and WBD are supportive of the proposed management and employee buyout and want them to succeed. It’s important to retain employment at the channel and to support the country and its democratic media," said a spokesperson for Access Industries.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on March 16, 2025.
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