US investment firm Centerbridge Partners is in preliminary talks to buy a stake in Clal Insurance Enterprise Holdings (TASE: CLIS). Centerbridge previously owned a stake in Phoenix Financial (TASE: PHOE), which it sold in 2024, and although it made a huge profit on the investment, it missed out on the stock’s 200% rise over the past year.
Centerbridge has reportedly been in talks with companies in the Israeli market recently, including with Alfred Akirov, who owns 14.3% of Clal shares and is also seeking to buy the controlling stake, in efforts that the Capital Markets, Insurance and Savings Authority has refused to approve.
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Centrebridge denies there is a deal on the table
Centerbridge denies that an acquisition is on the table but confirms that some talks are taking place. A senior source at the investment firm told Globes, “As far as Centrebridge knows, Alfred Akirov is not selling Klal Insurance shares and the Centerbridge fund has not spoken to anyone in the market.” The source added, “At the present time, we do not have even a quarter of contact with the market.”
The source does not deny holding talks with Alfred Akirov. “We meet him every now and then and ideas come up about all sorts of things, including other things, and we’re expected to meet him this week, but at the moment I can’t say we’re in a concrete process, not just with him but in general. We haven’t spoken to any other party either. I don’t know if anyone else is speaking to him, but certainly not Centrebridge.”
Centerbridge claims that the fund is not looking to take control of Clal Insurance by purchasing shares from other insurance companies that also own Clal Insurance for a total of 14.3% of the company’s shares. If the move actually happens with Akirov eventually, it will be a change in direction for him.
A year ago, Akirov was still planning to further increase his stake in Clal, telling Globes he was confident of receiving the long-awaited control permit and owning 30% of the shares. But the cold shoulder of the Commissioner for Capital Markets, Insurance and Savings, Amit Gal, may have persuaded Akirov to reconsider his options.
Published by Globes, Israel Business News – en.globes.co.il – on October 21, 2025.
© Copyright Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd., 2025.
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