By By Pierre Bertrand
Hedge-fund billionaire Bill Ackman and designer Neri Oxman have recently acquired a stake of approximately 4.9% in the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, with a value of about $27 million based on current market prices.
The purchase forms part of a larger share offering, from which the Israeli stock-exchange operator received around 242 million shekels ($64.4 million), as announced on Wednesday.
Pershing Square, Ackman’s hedge fund, has not yet responded to a request for comment.
Ackman, a former activist investor, has been vocal in his criticism of alleged antisemitism on some U.S. university campuses since the start of the Israel-Gaza war. He has addressed the issue at both Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
The investment made by Ackman and Oxman positions them among the latest high-profile investors in the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.
In November, Novo Holdings, the largest shareholder of Ozempic and Wegovy maker Novo Nordisk, disclosed that it held about an 8.42% stake in the exchange.
The Israeli stock-exchange operator revealed on Wednesday that a secondary offering resulted in the sale of 17.2 million shares, representing a stake of 18.56% according to FactSet data. The shares were sold at ILS20.60 each, generating total proceeds of approximately ILS353.4 million. The selling shareholders retained around ILS87 million.
Following the news, the stock price of TASE increased by 6.8% to ILS22.43 as of 1159 GMT.
While the identity of other new investors remains undisclosed by TASE, the exchange stated that the offering attracted interest from across Israel, the U.S., Europe, and Australia.
TASE intends to utilize the net proceeds for investments in its technology infrastructure. The offering is expected to close on or around Thursday.
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