Billionaire businessman Eitan Wertheimer dies at 70

Nahariya-born entrepreneur became one of Israel’s wealthiest men after US tycoon Warren Buffet bought a controlling share in his company, Iscar

Eitan Wertheimer attends a conference at Jerusalem's International Convention Center, on May 8, 2012. (Uri Lenz/FLASH90)
Eitan Wertheimer attends a conference at Jerusalem's International Convention Center, on May 8, 2012. (Uri Lenz/FLASH90)

One of Israel’s wealthiest men, leading industrialist Eitan Wertheimer, died on Monday after a long battle with cancer. He was 70.

For nearly four decades, Wertheimer was a leader in Israeli corporate industry after taking over the family-owned toolmaking company Iscar from his father, entrepreneur Stef Wertheimer. In 2006, Wertheimer sold the family business in one of the largest so-called exits in Israeli history.

Born and raised in the northern town of Nahariya, Wertheimer served in the IDF and then briefly worked on an assembly line at Iscar. After a short time away, he returned to the family business at his father’s request. In 1995, after his father was in a serious car accident, Wertheimer became CEO of Iscar.

Wertheimer led the transformation of Iscar into a precision tool-cutting company. The business caught the attention of American billionaire Warren Buffet, who purchased a controlling share of Iscar in 2006 for $4 billion.

In 2014, Wertheimer sold the subsidiary Iscar Blades Technology to the US company Pratt and Whitney. The family wealth grew to an estimated $7 billion, making it one of the wealthiest in Israel.

A philanthropist, Wertheimer was an ardent supporter of Israeli-Palestinian businesses and peace initiatives. He founded Erez College in the northern town of Shlomi, and the Experimental School at Tefen industrial park was founded by his father.

Wertheimer is survived by his father, 96, and his wife Ariela and five children.

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