Israel Matzav

The global village gets smaller: Israelis and Saudis to invest together in Indonesia

A fund that includes an Israeli bank holding company and a group of Saudis, all of whom are shareholders in Swiss bank Credit Suisse, will invest in several emerging markets including Indonesia.

An interesting collaboration between Israel and Saudi Arabia has come to light. IDB Group, chaired by Nochi Dankner, is establishing a $1 billion investment fund together with Saudi partners in Swiss bank Credit Suisse to invest in emerging markets in Latin America, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

The fund will be called EMCO and will be the first investment collaboration of its kind between an Israeli company and a the Saudi investment company belonging to the Olayan family, a Qatari government investment company, and Swiss bank Credit Suisse, in which IDB holds 3.2% of its shares.

IDB will invest $250 million in the fund in accordance with the rate of investment. The investments will be made via two of IDB's subsidiaries – Koor Industries and Clal Insurance.

The fund's first investment priority will be in crude oil, gas, and coal. One of its top countries for investment is Indonesia.

Nochi Dankner, who holds the controlling interest in IDB, said, "Being significant share holders in Credit Suisse for two years allows for a unique opportunity to establish a joint Credit Suisse fund with three of the bank's large shareholders.

And no one insisted on the existence of a 'Palestinian state' first. As we used to say in New York, business is business.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 1:35 PM