Securities administration - Israel
Income collection
| Market Record date | Ex-date | Basis for entitlement | Standard interest calculation rule | |
| Coupon payment a | Ex-date is equal to record date | Ex-date is equal to record date | Settled position on Record date | Actual/Actual |
| Dividend payment | Ex-date is equal to record date | Ex-date is equal to record date | Settled position on Record date | Not applicable |
a. Government bonds, Treasury bills and corporate bonds.
Dividends are usually announced 14 days before record date and payment date is between the twelfth and the eighteenth day after the record date.
Payment date is usually 15 days after record date for government bonds and corporate bonds unless otherwise prescribed by the conditions of the bond or the board of directors.
Corporate actions
Most common corporate events
The most common corporate events in Israel are rights issues, bonus issues and stock dividends.
The CSD usually (but without any guarantee) credits the account of the depository held with them on the first possible value date, as follows:
Rights issue
Rights are traded two business days before the exercise/expiry date.
If an investor buys rights on the designated trade date for the Rights Issue and wants to exercise them, then instructions to exercise the rights must be submitted with the buy instruction; otherwise, the rights will expire.
According to TASE regulations, the custodian’s default action is, if no other instructions are received from the holder, to let the rights lapse.
Bonus issue/stock dividend
For bonus issues and stock dividends, payment date = Record date and the first possible value date is Ex-date +1.
Organisation of AGM/EGMs
Companies are required to announce details of an AGM/EGM at least 21 calendar days before the date of the meeting. There is no clearly defined peak season for AGM/EGMs in Israel.
Payment systems
The BoI operates a real-time gross settlement (RTGS) system for interbank payments denominated in ILS. The system, known as Zahav, clears payments in real time throughout the day and the payments are considered irrevocable and final once the system participant has received a (gross) payment confirmation notice from Zahav (usually a few seconds after the participant inputs the payment details). International Bank Account Number (IBAN) standards are employed under Zahav. There are no minimum amounts for RTGS payments but it is mandatory for payments of ILS 3 mn or more to be made via MASAV.
Zahav operates 07:45-18:30 local time on regular business days and 07:45-14:00 local time on Fridays and holiday eves.
Proxy Voting procedures
Issuers are required to publish information regarding an AGM/EGM in two daily Hebrew newspapers and on TASE's MAYA system. Companies also issue meeting agendas and details in Hebrew that are processed by local custodians and received via the TASE. Meeting information is released by the issuer at least 21 calendar days ahead of the meeting date.
Investors are not required to be physically present at the meeting themselves and can issue proxy instructions and a power of attorney to local custodians. If certain AGM/EGM agenda items require a supermajority vote (indicated and defined on the agenda summary), shareholders must declare whether or not they have a personal interest in approving the resolution and the nature of such interest. If the shareholder does not make such declaration, his vote will not be taken into account.
There is no blocking in the local market for equities in connection with AGM/EGMs.
Blocking may apply to warrants/rights on which client instructions have been received.
Generally, local companies set a deadline for receipt of voting instructions or voting deeds as two days before the meeting.
Results of the AGM/EGM are submitted to the Israeli Securities Authority and the TASE and published via the TASE.