Business brief
Defense Debt Settlements, Real Estate Credit, and Global Corporate Shifts
Israeli corporate moves span MoF defense arrears, construction acquisitions, Teva's NYSE listing, and offshore energy plays.
Business
Teva's direct NYSE listing and biopharma margin expansion mark its structural comeback — shifting from cheap generics to proprietary biologics.
BackgroundTeva previously traded in the United States through ADR certificates, restricting its weighting and inclusion across major benchmark equity indices. CEO Richard Francis launched a strategic pivot to reduce reliance on generic manufacturing by investing in branded biopharmaceuticals.
- Direct ordinary share trading unlocks immediate eligibility for leading US equity benchmarks like the Russell 1000, driving passive index fund inflows into Teva's global equity base.
- Innovative brand medicine sales surpassed $1 billion in Q2 2026, lifting gross margins from 48% to 55% and validating management's move away from generic price wars.
- Management reaffirmed its target of a 30% operating profit margin by 2027, backed by a $700 million operational efficiency overhaul across global supply chains and manufacturing plants.
Business
ILift's ₪255 million takeover of Skyline consolidates construction machinery — betting on massive infrastructure tenders across the country.
BackgroundSkyline Cranes operates one of Israel's largest fleets of heavy construction and tower cranes leased to commercial high-rise builders. Modernizing infrastructure requires heavy equipment logistics to execute large-scale civil engineering works.
- ILift is backed by TASE-listed developer Alma Yesodot, controlled by investor Yitzchak Mirilashvili, anchoring long-term logistics support across high-rise residential and commercial development projects.
- Bank Hapoalim provided a ₪200 million senior loan facility over 7.5 years to finance the deal, signaling institutional banking appetite for essential construction logistics assets.
- The buyout package incorporates an institutional co-investment of ₪67 million alongside a ₪40 million convertible debt instrument, cushioning ILift against potential interest rate fluctuations.
Business
The treasury is moving to settle ₪17 billion in overdue defense tabs — relieving contractor balance sheets strained by unbudgeted emergency manufacturing.
BackgroundIsrael's defense industry operates under multi-year procurement frameworks negotiated between the Defense Ministry and the Accountant-General. The lack of an approved 2026 state budget led defense officials to issue unbacked emergency acquisition orders.
- Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and Israel Aerospace Industries incurred substantial short-term bank debt to finance emergency supply orders, raising operational carrying costs across domestic production facilities.
- IAI posted negative operating cash flows of approximately $800 million in Q2 2026 despite maintaining record international export order books, squeezing corporate liquidity.
- Publicly traded Elbit Systems carried heavy accounts receivable backlogs from the state, prompting treasury officials to draft structured debt repayment schedules to ease commercial vendor pressures.
Business
Direct Finance's ₪63 million buyout expands non-bank credit into construction debt — filling financing gaps left by cautious commercial banks.
BackgroundCommercial banks in Israel are subject to stringent regulatory credit exposure limits on domestic construction and real estate lending. Developers routinely seek non-bank mezzanine capital to bridge equity requirements for urban renewal and high-density residential developments.
- The transaction commits ₪34 million for direct equity control alongside a ₪29 million subordinated loan package, giving Sigma City immediate lending capacity for new residential developments.
- Sigma City currently manages an active ₪153 million loan portfolio supplying subordinated mezzanine capital to developers, filling junior equity tranches across high-density urban renewal projects.
- The takeover requires formal clearance from the Capital Markets, Insurance and Savings Authority, marking a key regulatory test for non-bank institutional expansion into residential real estate credit.
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