Markstone seeks deferral of repayment to banks

A foreign entity is said to be interested in buying Markstone's stake in Psagot.

The Markstone Fund continues its efforts to sell its holding in Psagot Investment House Ltd.. Sources inform "Globes" that the failed private equity firm, headed by Ron Lubash and Moti Weiss, recently approached a consortium of banks with a request to defer the repayment scheduled for this March, in order to enable it to proceed with a move to sell its 23% stake in Israel's largest investment house.

The fund's total debt to banks and bondholders is NIS 370 million. Markstone has yet to receive a response from the banks, which hold a lien on the Psagot shares.

Markstone received the Psagot shares in the deal whereby it sold to the investment house the provident funds of Prisma. The collapse of Prisma, the investment house that Markstone set up in 2006 at a huge investment of NIS 2 billion, was one of the main causes of the difficulties with which the fund has been coping in recent years.

"Globes" has also learned that alongside the possibilities of selling its Psagot stake to Psagot's controlling shareholder, the Apax Israel fund, or listing the minority holding in Psagot on the stock exchange, another option has opened up for Markstone, after it received a proposal to buy the shares from a third party, a foreign entity. However, according to a source familiar with the matter, "The proposal from the foreign entity is still in its infancy, there's nothing concrete, and they aren't talking about price."

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on February 23, 2015

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2015

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