Israeli Bank Leumi is to sell its investment fund management company Psagot Ofek to New York-based York Capital Management for $289 million....

Israeli Bank Leumi is to sell its investment fund management company Psagot Ofek to New York-based York Capital Management for $289 million. Psagot Ofek has NIS30 billion of assets under management, NIS20 billion of which is managed in mutual funds, and the remainder in provident funds and exchange traded funds. Other Israeli financial services groups such as Migdal Insurance, Africa Israel and Apax were also interested in acquiring Psagot Ofek but were not willing to pay the price which was based on 4.5 per cent of assets under management. The deal includes Psagot Ofek subsidiaries, Psagot Mutual Fund Managers-Leumi, Psagot Provident Fund Managers-Leumi, Ofer Financial Products, and Ofer Financial Instruments. York Capital was founded in 1991 and has around $6 billion in assets under management.