The Regulation of Investment Advice, Investment Marketing and Investment Portfolio Management Law of 1995 requires that corporate licensees for investment portfolio management services be incorporated in Israel.
The supply of pension fund management services and the establishment of private pension funds require incorporation, by virtue of the Control of Financial Services (Insurance) Law of 1961.
"Must have license
2.  [...]
(b) A person shall not engage in investment portfolio management, except if he holds a portfolio management license, [...]
[...]
Conditions for granting a portfolio management license
8. (a) The Authority shall grant a portfolio management license to an applicant who is an individual, if it finds that the following hold true for him:
(1) he is an adult;
(2) he is an Israel resident or proved that, even though he is not an Israel resident, he is able to comply with all provisions under this Law and that
they can be enforced on him;;[...]
(b) The Authority shall grant a portfolio management license to an applicant that is a company, if it finds that the following hold true for it:
(1) the company does not engage in underwriting and engages only in the management of investment portfolios, in investment advising, in investment marketing or in pension advising or pension marketing, as defined in the Pension Advising and Marketing Law, in the performance of Stock Exchange operations and in the performance of attendant operations required therefor; for this purpose, "attendant operations" – including investment in different categories of deposits in Israel currency or in foreign currency and in investments in savings programs approved by the Minister of Finance and the Knesset Finance Committee under the Encouragement of Saving (Income Tax Reductions and Loan Guaranties) Law 5716-1956.
(2) the company assumed the obligation that those who engage in its name in portfolio management, in investment advising or in investment marketing will be company employees who hold appropriate licenses, or that at least one employee will hold a portfolio management license and that the others who will be active in its name as aforesaid will be foreign dealers who may engage in portfolio management, investment advising and investment marketing under the provisions of section 10B;
(3) the company assumed the obligation that no person it knows to have been convicted of an offense will serve as one of its officers, and also not a person to whom a prohibition against serving in it as officer applies because of means of enforcement said in section 52DDD of the Securities Law, imposed on him under Chapter Eight "D" of the Securities Law, under Chapter Seven "B" of this Law or under Chapter Ten "A" of the Joint Investment Trusts Law – during the period in which it applies to
him;
(4) the company has equity in an amount that is not smaller than the amount prescribed in regulations;
(5) the company holds insurance, bank guaranties, deposits or securities in amounts, at rates and on conditions prescribed by regulations.
[...]
Definitions
10A. In this Chapter –
"foreign permit" – a permit to engage in the provision of services in a foreign state under the Law of that state;
"foreign individual" – an individual who is not an Israel resident and who holds a foreign permit;
"foreign dealer" – a foreign individual or a foreign body corporate;
"foreign body corporate" – a body corporate for which all the following hold true:
(1) it was incorporated abroad;
(2) control of it is held by persons who are not Israel residents; for this purpose holding or acquiring securities together with others shall not be deemed holding with Israel residents;
(3) it holds a foreign permit;
(4) its activity under the foreign permit is generally carried on outside Israel;
"licensed body corporate" – including a bank and also another banking corporation that under the Banking (Licensing) Law is allowed to engage in investment advising or
in investment marketing.
[...]
Provision of services of a foreign dealer through a licensed body corporate
10B. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 2, a foreign dealer may engage in the provision of services to clients of a licensed body corporate even without an
appropriate license under this Law if the conditions specified below are complied with and subject to the provisions of this Chapter:
(1) the foreign dealer and the licensed body corporate contracted a written agreement for provision of the said services;
(2) the foreign permit held by the foreign dealer allows it to engage – in the state where the permit was issued – in the provision of said services, and if it is a foreign body corporate – that those engaged in its name in the provision of said services also hold aforesaid foreign permits;
(3) the licensed body corporate may itself provide the services to its clients under the provisions of this Law;
(4) the foreign dealer and the licensed body corporate are registered in the Register of Foreign Dealers under the provisions of Article Three.[...]" (Regulation of Investment Advice, Investment Marketing and Portfolio Management Law (10.8.1995), last amended 10.1.2019, Sections 2, 8, 10A and 10B [unofficial translation])
-------------------
"Insurer's license
15. (a) The Commissioner may issue, at his discretion -
(1) to a company, as defined in the Companies Law - an Israel insurer's license :
(2) to a foreign body corporate registered in Israel, which engages in insurance in a foreign state and is subject to supervision by the authorities of the foreign state - a foreign insurer's license.
(a1) The Commissioner shall issue a license to a company that intends to manage a pension provident fund that is not an insurance fund, only if - in addition to the condition in subsection (a)(1) - the condition specified in section 4(a)(4) of the Control of Provident Funds Law holds true for it, and on the following conditions:
(1) its sole occupation is the management of pension provident funds that are not insurance funds, however -
(a) it is not allowed to hold means of control in an insurer who received a license as said in this subsection;
(b) it may hold means of control in a management company that is not an insurer as said in subparagraph
(a) or in the agent of a body corporate who holds a license to engage in insurance branches approved by the Commissioner, subject to the conditions he approved, on condition that it holds all means of control in them;
(2) in respect of a company that wishes to manage a veteran fund - it shall manage only the veteran fund, and in respect of a company that wished to manage another pension provident fund - it shall not manage more than one fund that is entitled to an earmarked bond of the category "Arad"; for this purpose, "earmarked bond of the category "Arad"" - a nonnegotiable bond issued by the State of Israel only to pension provident funds, under the State Loan Regulations (Series of the Category "Arad") 5755-1995.
(b) The branches of insurance in which the license holder is authorized to engage shall designate in the insurer's license.
(c) Notice of the issue of an insurer's license and of the branches in which the insurer is authorized to engage shall be published in Reshumot.
(d) The Minister may make rules on sole occupation, as said in subsection (a1)(1).[...]" (Control of Financial Services (Insurance) Law (23.4.1981), last amended 7.1.2019, Section 15 [unofficial translation])
Regulation of Investment Advice, Investment Marketing and Portfolio Management Law (10.8.1995), last amended 10.1.2019, Sections 2, 8, 10A and 10B
Control of Financial Services (Insurance) Law (23.4.1981), last amended 7.1.2019, Section 15
[<a href="https://www.nevo.co.il/law_html/law01/P181K4_001.htm">Law</a>],[<a href="https://www.isa.gov.il/sites/ISAEng/1485/Documents/IsaFile_2912142.pdf">Law_Eng</a>],[<a href="https://www.nevo.co.il/law_html/law01/p194_001.htm">Law</a>],[<a href="https://www.imolin.org/doc/amlid/Israel/Israel_Control_of_Financial_Services_1981.pdf">Law_Eng</a>],[<a href="https://www.oecd.org/israel/49864025.pdf">OECD</a>]