Doors Open For Israeli Investors As Credit Suisse And Bank Leumi Launch Mutual Fund

Philip Morton, Investors Offshore.com

15 February 2001

A new mutual fund officially launched this week by Bank Leumi, Israel's second largest bank, and financial giant Credit Suisse, will allow Israeli investors to diversify their holdings and invest in major international companies. The new fund is the Ofek-Leumi Top Global, which will be managed by Credit Suisse Asset Management (CSAM) in Switzerland, and will invest at least 70 per cent of its assets in stocks from the Dow Jones Global Titans index as well as the FTSE 100.

Israeli investors are set to benefit from the fact that the new fund will expose them to sectors which are for the most part under-represented on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, such as entertainment, energy and infrastructure. Investors will also gain access to the shares of big names such as Nokia and General Electric.

According to Ofek Securities & Investments CEO, Niza Rousso-Shtauber, the fund will charge a 2.7 per cent management fee. She said: 'Israelis have disproportionately invested in bank deposits till now, as they have been very attractive.' She predicted that 'global funds will become an inseparable part of Israeli investors' portfolios.'

Israeli investors have traditionally preferred to keep the vast majority of their investments within Israel, but Bank Leumi's vice president for marketing and strategic development, Yona Fogel, predicted that the US$8bn currently invested by Israelis abroad would grow significantly in the future, particularly if there are changes in investment and tax laws.

There are plans for more funds, too. Bank Leumi's subsidiary Ofek hopes to launch six to eight funds in cooperation with CSAM in the coming years. Their collaboration may also extend beyond mutual funds, and other investment products could well be offered in the future.

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