Masad Oz and America Israel Real Estate Groups Merge, Eyeing Stock Exchange

Two prominent Israeli real estate companies, Masad Oz Group and America Israel, have signed a full merger agreement, consolidating their residential and commercial development activities alongside engineering and project management in real estate and infrastructure. The merger aims to combine America Israel's development and capital with Masad Oz's engineering and project management capabilities. A key objective is to prepare for a future debt and equity offering on the stock exchange, contingent on business development and market conditions.

The full merger follows Masad Oz's acquisition of over 30% of America Israel's shares in December, a deal valuing the latter at hundreds of millions of shekels. That previous transaction integrated Masad Oz's residential development operations into America Israel, including land in Netanya's new Havazelet neighborhood. Following the completion of the merger, key leadership roles will be established: Pinchas (Pini) Cohen as Chairman, Amit Masad as Vice Chairman, Alon Stauber as CEO of the unified group, Shimshon Harel as CEO of America Israel, and Neta Berman as Chief Engineering Officer. Current America Israel shareholders, including Cohen, Harel, Migdal Insurance and Financial Holdings, and Mercantile Bank, will become shareholders in the new entity. The move is supported by Leumi Partners, a shareholder in Masad Oz, along with Migdal and Mercantile.

Masad Oz, founded approximately 30 years ago, has primarily focused on engineering project management in both public and private sectors. Its engineering division currently employs around 250 engineers and manages projects valued at approximately 40 billion shekels, including the expansion of Ben Gurion Airport and the development of neighborhoods with about 130,000 housing units nationwide. In recent years, Masad Oz has expanded into development in London's income-generating real estate, industrial, logistics, and residential sectors. Three years ago, Leumi Partners invested 60 million shekels for a 20% stake in the company.

America Israel is a veteran real estate company primarily focused on residential development, having delivered over 7,000 apartments and currently advancing around 2,500 units with partners. Notable projects include Moza in Tel Aviv, CREATE in Kiryat Ata, and the Havazelet ART complex in Netanya.