The U.S. investment fund Affinity Partners, led by Jared Kushner, has sold roughly a quarter of its stake in Israel’s largest insurance company, Phoenix Financial, raising NIS 1.05 billion ($343 million). The fund sold 2.5% of Phoenix’s shares and will retain a 7.4% stake valued at approximately NIS 3.3 billion ($1.06 billion).
Affinity, whose investors include the sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar, sold the shares to three major global institutional investors. Calcalist has learned that the largest buyer was U.S.-based Fidelity Investments, which purchased approximately 1.6% of Phoenix’s shares. Fidelity manages about $7 trillion in assets and advises on roughly $18 trillion. The firm already held a stake in Phoenix and has now increased its investment.
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Jared Kushner (left) and Eyal Ben Simon.
(Photos: Orel Cohen and Yariv Katz)
The two other institutional investors are becoming Phoenix shareholders for the first time. Phoenix declined to comment.
The transaction was led by investment bank Jefferies, which advised Affinity on the sale. Phoenix CEO Eyal Ben Simon has spent the past week and a half in New York meeting with international investors as part of the process.
Despite strong investor demand, Kushner chose to remain Phoenix’s largest shareholder. The shares were sold at NIS 168.5 apiece, representing a 4% discount to Tuesday morning’s opening price on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. Phoenix shares closed the trading session down 2%.
The sale enables Affinity to fully recoup its original investment in Phoenix, which totaled NIS 932 million ($300 million). The fund has also received approximately NIS 230 million ($74 million) in dividends since becoming a shareholder. Even after selling just a quarter of its stake, Affinity has already recovered its initial investment and generated a substantial profit while retaining shares worth more than NIS 3.3 billion. Based on the current value of its remaining holdings and dividends received, the investment has generated a return of roughly 4.5 times its original cost.
Affinity acquired its 9.83% stake in Phoenix in two transactions completed in July 2024 and January 2025, purchasing the shares from U.S. investment firms Centerbridge Partners and Gallatin Point Capital. Those firms were forced to exit their investment before Phoenix’s market value went on to increase more than fivefold.
In May, Calcalist revealed that Kushner intended to sell a 2%-3% stake in Phoenix while remaining the company’s largest shareholder. The objective was to recover the fund’s initial investment while maintaining exposure to Phoenix’s future growth.
Phoenix shares have traded with increased volatility since Calcalist first reported Affinity’s intention to reduce its stake, similar to the pressure seen when Centerbridge and Gallatin Point signaled their own planned exit two years earlier. With the transaction now completed, that overhang could ease, particularly after Affinity indicated it has no immediate plans to sell additional shares and intends to remain Phoenix’s largest shareholder.
In a statement, Affinity said it “is proud to continue to be the largest shareholder in Phoenix and expresses great confidence in the company’s management team, its strategy, and its future growth trajectory. Affinity welcomes the addition of these leading institutional investors to the next phase of Phoenix’s exciting growth.”
Affinity acquired its Phoenix stake in two stages. The fund, which has raised approximately $2 billion from Gulf investors, including sovereign wealth funds from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar, initially faced regulatory scrutiny over its application for a holding permit.
As a result, Affinity initially purchased a 4.95% stake in July 2024 for NIS 466 million ($150 million), together with an option to acquire an additional 4.95% at the same valuation. Exercising the option required approval from Israel’s Capital Markets Authority, which was granted in January 2025.
The regulator approved the transaction on the condition that Affinity’s voting rights would be capped at 5%, despite the fund owning nearly 10% of the company’s shares.
In total, Affinity invested NIS 932 million to acquire its 9.83% holding. Following the latest sale, the fund has recovered its entire investment in cash while still retaining a stake worth more than NIS 3.3 billion, making it one of the most profitable investments completed in Israel’s financial sector in recent years.
Affinity had previously explored acquiring a 25% stake in Phoenix Insurance Agencies at a valuation of approximately $1 billion, but those negotiations did not result in a transaction. The fund also owns a 15% stake in Shlomo Holdings, the Schmelzer family’s holding company, which it acquired in 2025 for $110 million.
Kushner, who is married to Ivanka Trump, the daughter of U.S. President Donald Trump, is widely regarded as a supporter of Israel and remains influential in Republican foreign policy circles. In recent years, he has been involved in efforts to secure the release of hostages kidnapped on October 7 and has participated in diplomatic discussions on behalf of the Trump administration.
Centerbridge and Gallatin Point acquired control of Phoenix in November 2019. Shortly afterward, Eyal Ben Simon was appointed CEO and Benny Gabbay became chairman. Ben Simon succeeded Eyal Lapidot, who transformed Phoenix into one of Israel’s leading financial institutions.
Today, Phoenix operates without a controlling shareholder and is Israel’s largest institutional financial group, with a market capitalization of approximately NIS 44 billion ($14.2 billion) and NIS 623 billion ($201 billion) in assets under management as of the end of the first quarter.
From Phoenix’s perspective, the transaction further broadens its international shareholder base, with foreign investors now owning approximately 40% of the company’s shares.
When Ben Simon and Gabbay took office, Phoenix’s market capitalization stood at NIS 5.1 billion. Since then, the company’s value has risen by approximately 860%, increasing more than ninefold over their tenure.
