Caesarea’s Second-in-Command May Exit as Tensions Rise, While Isracard Overhauls Its Management

Tensions are rising at Cal, Israel’s second-largest credit card company, where CEO Yifat Gryani and her deputy, Lital Wexler, are now in a strained relationship that could soon lead to Wexler’s departure, according to Calcalist. Company insiders say the friction stems from Gryani’s planned efficiency measures, while others at Cal deny that explanation. In any case, Gryani is expected to carry out a series of changes at Cal in the coming weeks.

Wexler serves as deputy CEO and head of the resources and customer experience division. She joined Cal in 2022 as chief human resources officer and, after a broad reorganization, also took on responsibility for human resources and customer experience. She had also run for Cal’s top job after Lavi Lavie stepped down after seven years to become El Al’s CEO, but Gryani won that contest.

Cal is still owned by Bank Discount, with 72%, and the First International Bank, with 28%. In September, they signed an agreement to sell the company to Union, controlled by George Horesh, and to Harel Investments, the parent company of Harel Insurance, in a deal that could reach 4 billion shekels. Once completed, Union will own 80% and Harel 20%. Gryani has led Cal since December 2025, following the signing of the deal, in an appointment backed by Bank Discount. She came to Cal from Isracard, where she was deputy CEO until July 2025, after a rift with then CEO Ran Oz following a meeting with the Delek Group, which had become Isracard’s controlling shareholder that month.

Meanwhile, Isracard is also undergoing upheaval under its new CEO, Itamar Forman, who took office two months ago. He is prompting the departure of three executives from Oz’s era and reducing the management team to nine members from 11. He is also eliminating the strategy and credit divisions, merging them into other units, while the technology division will remain separate. Forman outlined the restructuring in an email to employees obtained by Calcalist.

The move follows recent strategic steps, including an agreement with El Al over the FlyCard club and a memorandum of understanding to buy Bank Ash’s operations, with the aim of eventually turning it into Isracard Bank. As part of the reorganization, Gila Lahar, head of credit, Gili Hoch, head of strategy and business development, and Ofer Levinger, head of technology, are expected to leave, with a new technology chief to be hired.