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Israel Discount Bank

Palestinians wait in line to withdraw money from an ATM in the main market in Ramallah city in the West Bank on June 9, 2024. (Jaafar ASHTIYEH / AFP)
August 31, 2026, 6:58 pm
Palestinian banking crisis averted, as Israeli bank delays plan to halt collaboration
A day before deadline, Discount Bank agrees to push off plan to stop correspondent banking services to Palestinian counterparts, which tethers West Bank to global economy
By Jacob Magid
Ilustrative: Offices of Discount and Hapoalim banks in the center of Tel Aviv (Miriam Alster/ FLASH90)
August 21, 2026, 1:11 am
Progress made in talks with Israeli banks to delay move that could collapse PA economy
Sources tell ToI that Discount and Hapoalim are likely to hold off on threat to stop providing critical correspondent services to Palestinian banks, following Western intervention
By Jacob Magid
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich gestures toward a map of the West Bank during a press conference at the Finance Ministry in Jerusalem, September 3, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
July 23, 2026, 3:25 am
Israel acts to ease Palestinian banking crisis it helped create, but is it moving too late?
Smotrich signs waiver allowing transactions with Palestinian banks until end of 2026, though Israeli financial institutions are wary about continuing to provide services crucial to keeping West Bank economy afloat
By Jacob Magid
Banking supervisor Daniel Hahiashvili speaks at a press conference in Tel Aviv on May 19, 2025. (Sharon Wrobel/Times of Israel)
May 18, 2026, 7:03 pm
Regulator demands fairness from Israeli banks as they cash in on hefty fees
Banking supervisor warns that lenders that don’t treat their customers well will be ‘in trouble,’ sees the entry of new players catalyzing competition in the local banking system
By Sharon Wrobel
A woman takes out money from a Bank HaPoalim ATM machiine in Tel Aviv on December 9, 2024. (Miriam Alster/FLASH90)
May 6, 2026, 11:11 pm
Israel’s competition watchdog declares top 5 banks an oligopoly, targets deposits
Hapoalim, Leumi, Mizrahi Tefahot, Discount and First International control 98% of banking sector’s assets, competition watchdog says; critics denounce their huge profits, excessive fees
By Sharon Wrobel
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, seen after a press conference in Jerusalem, December 4, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
December 25, 2025, 8:42 pm
Smotrich threatens banks with extra taxes if they go after customers’ benefits
Finance minister threatens to double proposed new tax on excess profits slapped on lenders’ excessive income to 30%; banking shares plunge
By Sharon Wrobel
Illustrative: People walk by a Bank Hapoalim branch in Tel Aviv on March 25, 2025. (Miriam Alster/FLASH90)
August 25, 2025, 8:38 am
As banks pig out on profits, top economist urges tax to keep them from hogging wealth
After seeing plans aimed at boosting competition fall short, former Bank of Israel research head Michel Strawczynski says levy on lenders’ excessive income will ease wartime burden
By Sharon Wrobel
Illustrative: View of the Bank Hapoalim offices in the center of Tel Aviv. August 4, 2015. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)
August 15, 2025, 8:47 am
Top banks notch record profits from credit and fee growth during wartime
Gap widens between banks’ soaring gains and the financial reality of ordinary Israelis
By Sharon Wrobel
Ilustrative: Offices of Discount and Hapoalim banks in the center of Tel Aviv (Miriam Alster/ FLASH90)
April 9, 2025, 5:11 pm
Hapoalim and Discount each fined NIS 40 million by competition watchdog
Israel Competition Authority alleges that the commercial banks’ minority stakes in fintech startup Neema would restrict fair conduct and hinder competition
By Sharon Wrobel
A branch of Bank Leumi in central Jerusalem (Maxim Dinshtein/Flash90)
March 30, 2025, 11:17 pm
Unbalanced: Banks offer minor benefits, with major catches, for war-harmed clients
Told to give back a fraction of their vast profits, Hapoalim offers $68 to students and reservists… if they have a deposit account or $8,000 balance, Leumi will defer payments on mortages below $27,000
By Sharon Wrobel
Illustrative: Parked airplanes belonging to Israir and El Al at Ben Gurion International Airport, August 8, 2020. (Olivier Fitoussi/FLASH90)
March 10, 2025, 2:35 pm
Daily Briefing Mar. 10: Day 521 – Israeli banks gain in war, El Al gets company on NY route
Tech editor Sharon Wrobel discusses lenders’ profits, Israir’s new TLV-NY plans; reporter Diana Bletter analyzes allegations against IDF in Gaza and non-Jewish villagers’ return home
By Jessica Steinberg, Diana Bletter and Sharon Wrobel
The Bank of Israel's main offices in Jerusalem, January 2, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/ Flash90)
February 26, 2025, 4:50 pm
Israeli banks told to set aside $839m to offer customers lower fees and other benefits
Bank of Israel urges banks profiting from high interest rates to provide benefits, as households, small businesses, and other war-affected populations struggle to make ends meet
By Sharon Wrobel
Agricultural waste. (Matauw, iStock by Getty Images)
December 5, 2024, 10:22 am
Israel to get 1st facility to recycle organic waste, produce gas and fertilizer
Discount Bank, environment ministry to fund plant near Gaza border that will use sealed containers of microbes to break down 200 tons of household and agricultural waste annually
By Sue Surkes
Illustration: Israelis withdraw money from Bank Hapoalim cash machines. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
November 18, 2024, 10:48 pm
Major lenders’ profits soar as banks cash in on wartime interest rate growth
As homes and businesses grapple with loan repayments, Hapoalim sees quarterly profit rise 14% fueled by NIS 4.58b in net interest income; Discount’s profit jumps 39%, Leumi’s 30%
By Sharon Wrobel
Illustrative: An Ireland supporter holds a Palestinian flag on the stands during the Euro 2024 group B qualifying soccer match between Gibraltar and Ireland at the Argarve Stadium, outside Faro, Portugal, Oct. 16, 2023. (AP/Joao Matos)
April 8, 2024, 1:00 pm
Ireland’s sovereign investment fund to divest from six Israeli firms
Irish government will pull investments from Israel’s largest banks plus a supermarket chain active in East Jerusalem and West Bank
By Reuters and ToI Staff
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