Israel-British Bank

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Israel-British Bank was a bank founded on 21 October 1929 by Polish Jewish immigrants to Mandate Palestine as Immigrants Bank Palestine-Poland. The bank changed its name to Bank Haolim Erez-Israel-Polania on 20 April 1937 and on 6 April 1945 to Palestine-British Bank. By 1961 it had branches in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa, Nathanya, Jaffa, and London. On 1 August 1965 it became the Israeli-British Bank. On 1 October 1968 the London branch became a newly formed subsidiary under the title of Israel-British Bank (London).

Nahum Zeev Williams purchased it in 1938 and on his death the bank passed into the hands of a group headed by his family, associated with the Mizrachi movement.[1]

In July 1974 the bank collapsed, owing British investors £46.6 million. Yehoshua Ben-Zion, the managing director of Israel-British Bank was convicted of embezzling £20 million ($39.4 million) from the bank. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison. After urging of the Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin in 1977, Ben-Zion was pardoned by the Israeli president Ephraim Katzir, on medical grounds. He was released after serving three years.[2][3][4]

References

  1. ↑ Sedan, Gil. Bank scandal hits Israel. 11 July 1974.
  2. ↑ Langer, Felicia (1974) With my own eyes. Israel and the Occupied Territories 1967-1973. Ithaca Press. ISBN 0-903729-10-5. Page 126.
  3. ↑ Israel Yearbook on Human Rights 1979, Volume 9; Volume 1979 By Yoram Dinstein, p. 2011
  4. ↑ Justice in Israel: a study of the Israeli judiciary, p. 241
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