Israel's Child Savings Program Reaches 25 Billion Shekels With Majority Managed in Provident Funds

Israel's National Insurance Institute reported that since the launch of the "Savings for Every Child" program in January 2017, a total of 25.4 billion shekels have been deposited into savings accounts for Israeli children. The program aims to provide every child with a financial foundation upon reaching adulthood. By the end of 2025, about 70% of these funds, approximately 17.7 billion shekels, were contributed directly by the National Insurance Institute, while parents added around 7.7 billion shekels by opting to double their monthly savings contributions through child allowances.

The accumulated profit from these savings accounts reached roughly 3.85 billion shekels, indicating significant returns since the program's inception. In 2025 alone, 3.56 billion shekels were deposited into active savings plans, which numbered over 3.6 million, alongside about 335,000 inactive plans due to withdrawals or transfers. During the year, 122,300 plans were fully redeemed, and 2,960 partially redeemed, totaling about 1.075 billion shekels paid out to families.

A notable trend revealed by the report is the shift from bank-managed savings to provident funds, with 84% of active accounts held in provident funds by the end of 2025. This shift accelerated after a legislative amendment in January 2025 allowed parents to stop bank deposits and open new provident fund accounts. Consequently, 98,119 new provident fund accounts were opened that year, while many bank accounts were closed, especially at Bank Hapoalim, which accounted for over 40% of closures.

Performance varied among fund managers: Analyst provident fund showed the highest profit rate relative to funds managed, with a 711.4 million shekel profit on 1.44 billion shekels deposited. Mor and Migdal funds also reported high returns. Altshuler Shaham, the largest provident fund by number of accounts, earned 79.9 million shekels on 7.9 billion shekels. Among banks, Bank Hapoalim led in both absolute profit (272.5 million shekels) and return rate, while Bank Yahav recorded only 2.3 million shekels profit.

Regarding parental involvement, about 63% of parents chose to double their child's monthly savings in 2025, adding 57 shekels monthly. However, only 60% of parents have actively selected investment tracks since the program began, with 54% choosing actively in plans whose selection period ended between July 2024 and June 2025. The majority of new accounts opened in 2025 (94.8%) were in provident funds.

Zvika Cohen, acting CEO of the National Insurance Institute, emphasized the program's role in promoting equal opportunity and urged parents to increase their engagement in both additional deposits and investment choices to maximize the financial benefits for their children.