Insurance tycoon Itzik Oz to become anchor investor in Pasternak-Shoham IPO
Itzik Oz, Chairman of Phoenix Agencies, plans to acquire a 7% stake in the investment house Pasternak-Shoham as part of its upcoming IPO. The offering is planned for later this month at a valuation of 280 million shekels.
The investment house Pasternak-Shoham is in the final stages of its initial public offering (IPO) at a valuation of approximately 280 million shekels (pre-money). Globes has learned that the IPO has received a boost from businessman Itzik Oz, head of Phoenix Agencies, who is expected to serve as an anchor investor.
Oz plans to acquire a stake of about 7% for approximately 25 million shekels. Additionally, two other figures from the insurance industry are expected to join him, purchasing a combined 5% stake for about 18 million shekels. Together, these three investors will account for more than half of the total capital raised (about 81 million shekels) in the IPO.
Pasternak-Shoham intends to use the proceeds to acquire a 50% stake in an insurance agency to enter the financial services sector (provident funds, training funds, pensions, and life insurance). The company notes that this move will create synergies with existing operations and establish a business line with low correlation to capital market activity, serving as a natural hedge for current operations.
3 things to know about the Pasternak-Shoham IPO
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About 81 million shekels: The planned capital raising volume at a valuation of 280 million shekels.
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12% of shares: The stake to be purchased by Oz and two other senior insurance industry figures for about 43 million shekels.
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9.3 billion shekels: The volume of assets managed by Pasternak-Shoham in mutual funds and investment portfolios.
A billion-shekel exit
Itzik Oz is a prominent figure in the local insurance industry. In 1992, he co-founded the agency Agam Leaderim, which served over 200,000 clients and was later sold to Phoenix Insurance. In 2022, Phoenix merged its acquired agencies into Phoenix Agencies. Last year, Oz recorded an impressive exit by selling his 17% stake in Phoenix Agencies, where he serves as chairman, for 763 million shekels. It is estimated that his career in the insurance agency has yielded him an unprecedented sum of over 1 billion shekels.
As Oz is not subject to the senior salary law, his compensation is six times higher than that of CEOs at major financial institutions. His annual salary cost in 2025 stood at 28.3 million shekels, compared to approximately 4.1 million shekels for Phoenix CEO Eyal Ben Simon. Beyond his role at Phoenix Agencies, Oz has experience in the capital market, having previously held control of the public real estate company Ravad, which he sold for 160 million shekels after three and a half years.
100% growth last year
Pasternak-Shoham operates in two main areas: investment portfolio management and mutual funds. In the fund sector, which accounts for 82% of revenue, it manages assets worth about 6 billion shekels. In investment management, it handles securities portfolios worth about 3.3 billion shekels.
The company ended 2025 with revenues of approximately 70.5 million shekels, a 102% increase over 2024. Net profit jumped by about 160% to 26.9 million shekels. The company is controlled by founders Eran Pasternak (Chairman, 60% of capital) and Shai Shoham (CEO, 40%).
