FINANCIAL SERVICES

Israel's financial regulators have proposed that supermarket chains, credit card companies and investment houses will be able to accept deposits and offer credit.

The benefits over two years meet the target set by the Bank of Israel to ease the burden for customers, while the banks are reporting record profits.

The company has filed a prospectus with the SEC, showing that its revenue tripled in 2024, with 96% deriving from crypto trading.

Eyal Gafni told the Globes "Going Long on Israel" Conference that with higher awareness the public can stop keeping their money in current accounts with zero returns.

Supervisor of Banks Daniel Hahiashvili sees growing risk in bank loans subsidizing new home purchases.

Munich Re, an early investor in Next Insurance, is buying the 71% of the company, which serves small businesses in the US, that it does not already own.

They all reported strong results for 2024, yet while Menora Mivtachim and The Phoenix rose sharply, Migdal and Clal went the other way.

The Competition Authority is considered the easier of the two regulatory hurdles that the deal must overcome, the other being the Supervisor of Banks.

First International Bank of Israel's return on equity in 2024 was 19%, the highest among Israel's banks.

The profit is 3% higher than for the previous year. The bank will distribute a cash dividend of 30% of profits, and will also buy back shares.

Grain’s technology optimizes foreign exchange for cross-border transactions, automatically mitigating currency fluctuation risks while sourcing pricing opportunities to drive higher sales conversions for its customers.

The bank is offering two series of CoCo bonds, one of which is for 25 years, and 12-month commercial paper.

Now the largest shareholder in Israeli financial group The Phoenix Holdings, Kushner, who was instrumental in forging the Abraham Accords, has financial ties spanning regional friends and foes.

Bank Leumi earned a profit of NIS 9.8 billion in 2024, 40% more than in 2023.

Bank Hapoalim expects to post a profit of NIS 8.5-9.5 billion in each of the years 2025 and 2026, but expresses concern about the real estate sector.

The bank reported net profit of NIS 5.5 billion last year, up 11% from NIS 4.9 billion in 2023.

Supervisor of Banks, Daniel Hahiashvili is reportedly reluctant to let banks increase their dividend distribution, from a ceiling of 40% of profits towards 50%.

For the deal to go through, approval is now needed from the Supervisor of Banks and the Israel Competition Authority.

Check Point chief of staff Gil Messing: "These are the capabilities of a state actor. This does not necessarily mean Iran, but in the past Iranian entities have been behind such attacks.

Mortgage taking was down 50% from the preceding month but up 30% from January 2024, the Bank of Israel reports.

"Globes" examines why Rapyd, Melio and eToro have halved their valuations, even though revenue and profitability are growing.

The Israeli digital payments company has cut its valuation 60% to $3.5 billion, "Bloomberg" reports.

Hanegbi will replace Reuven Krupik, who ends his term as chairman of the bank on February 17, 2025 and steps down from the board of directors after nine years.

Boosted by the bidding war for Isracard, the owners have hired investment bank J.P. Morgan to promote the sale of the company.

The Israeli businessman has recorded a 52% gain on the 31 million shares in the bank that he bought 30 months ago.

Itai Ben-Zaken recovered from personal and business adversity to found Honeycomb, a fast-growing real estate insurance startup.

The Israeli online contract-for-difference (CFD) platform has seen its share price rise 70% over the past year to a market cap of £2.1 billion.

The Israeli online trading platform will seek a company valuation of $5 billion, "The Financial Times" reports.

The Capital Market, Insurance and Savings Authority has approved the sale of shares in Phoenix Financial Ltd. (TASE: PHOE) to the Affinity Fund of Jared Kushner's, son-in-law of US President-elect Donald Trump.

Last month beat the previous monthly record for mortgage taking of NIS 13.4 billion in March 2022, the Bank of Israel reports.