Business

State investment fund pulls out of Israeli companies operating in illegal settlements

NTMA says value of funds in six companies is under €3m and and says it will keep other investments in region ‘under review’

'ISIF has determined that the risk profile of these investments is no longer within its investment parameters,' Minister for Finance Michael McGrath said. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill

Ian Curran
Fri Apr 5 2024 - 11:14

The State-owned Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) will divest itself of shareholdings in a number of Israeli companies that have activities in the occupied Palestinian territories, citing the “risk profile” of the investments which are valued at just under €3 million.

The fund, which is operated by the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA), will also review other investments in the region to ensure they align with the fund’s investment parameters and objectives, Minister for Finance Michael McGrath said on Friday.

The decision relates to ISIF’s investments in six companies that have activities in the occupied territories: Bank Hapoalim BM; Bank Leumi-le Israel BM; Israel Discount Bank; Mizrahi Tefahot Bank Ltd; First International Bank and Rami Levi CN Stores.

“I have been advised by the NTMA that it has decided to divest from certain ISIF global portfolio investments in companies that have certain activities in the occupied Palestinian territory,” Mr McGrath said in a statement. “ISIF has determined that the risk profile of these investments is no longer within its investment parameters and that the commercial objectives of these investments can be achieved via other investments.”

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He said the decision would be implemented as soon as possible over the coming weeks.

According to its 2021 annual report, ISIF has investments in nine companies named in the UN Human Rights Council database of businesses involved in certain activities related to the Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory.

Sinn Féin’s Illegal Settlements Divestments Bill, which is currently at the second stage in the Oireachtas, would force the NTMA to ensure ISIF is not invested in any companies on the database.

“I am advised ISIF will keep under review the alignment of relevant investments within its investment parameters and commercial objectives,” the Minister said in a statement. “While recognising the independence of ISIF in the management of the investment portfolio, I believe this is the correct investment decision in respect of the assets it manages on behalf of the State.”

A spokesman for the NTMA declined to comment on the timing of the decision, coming in the same week in which the Israeli Defence Forces faced widespread condemnation for a fatal attack on an aid convoy in the Gaza Strip.

The agency also declined to comment on the nature of the risks associated with its investments in companies involved in some way with illegal settlements on occupied Palestinian land and why it invested in those companies in the first instance.

[ Bill to ban investment in illegal Israeli settlements could see Ireland become international outlier, committee to hear ]

Sinn Féin spokesman on foreign affairs John Brady welcomed the NTMA’s decision but said the Government continued to obstruct the passage of the Illegal Settlements Divestment Bill. He called on the Coalition to enact the legislation and to initiate an immediate audit of the entire portfolio held by NTMA to ensure that “all shareholdings in businesses that support and make illegal settlements viable are also divested from”.

Labour Party leader Ivana Bacik said the move was a step in the right direction. “The relentless violence and suffering endured by the people of Gaza demands urgent international attention. It is heartening to see the NTMA taking steps to divest from investments in companies operating in the occupied territories, but this is just the beginning.”

Ian Curran

Ian Curran

Ian Curran is a Business reporter with The Irish Times

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