Wisr Acquires 45% of Altshuler Shaham Finances for $215 Million

The controlling stake sale in Altshuler Shaham Finances has been finalized, with Wisr set to acquire 45% of the company's shares for 800 million shekels (approximately $215 million). The shares are being sold by Altshuler Shaham Ltd., owned by Gilad Altshuler and Kalman Shaham.

Concurrently, the CEO of Altshuler Shaham Finances, Yair Levinstein, will purchase an additional 10% of the shares for around 180 million shekels. Altshuler and Shaham will continue to manage Altshuler Shaham Ltd., which oversees the investment house's operations excluding provident funds. This deal signifies their departure from control over the entity holding the majority of Altshuler Shaham's assets under management.

Altshuler Shaham Finances, currently valued at approximately 1.2 billion shekels, will become a subsidiary of Wisr. This move positions Wisr with two main arms: finance and insurance, the latter through its existing subsidiary, Ayalon Insurance. Ayalon entered the provident fund sector last July, raising over a billion shekels.

Altshuler Shaham Finances manages 112 billion shekels, and it remains unclear if both companies will continue managing provident fund activities separately. Wisr is controlled by Emil Vinshel, who holds 29% and serves as chairman, and Zvi Barak's Kaisarea Holdings, which owns 28.4%. Wisr's primary holding is 70% of Ayalon Insurance, while Wisr's own digital insurance business constitutes 15% of the group's activities.