Client updates

The Israel Securities Authority recently published a proposal for a series of legislative amendments relating to digital (cryptographic) assets, whose implications go beyond the realm of digital assets and do not herald much good news for Israeli crypto ventures.

A new Supreme Court ruling reverses a district court decision, while imposing heightened liability and an enhanced duty to disclose information on “on paper” apartment sellers.

The Israeli Ministry of Finance and the Competition Authority are pushing to introduce a plan in the annual Economic Arrangements Law that would impose significant restrictions on importers and suppliers of major brands, with the aim of reducing concentration and increasing competition in the food and toiletries market in Israel.

The Israeli tax authorities are examining acquisition transactions, inter alia, to ensure they are not artificial transactions intended for offsetting losses. Transactions acquiring public shells are no exception in this regard.

Israeli cyber companies operating in Europe are exposed to the GDPR even though they are registered in Israel, and even if the information they collect is not processed or stored in Europe.

A sale of intellectual property between related parties requires advance planning and preparation in order to avoid tax exposures in Israel.

The Israeli Competition Authority believes its authority to issue information requests is not limited to Israeli companies, and that foreign companies with no affiliation to Israel are also subject to its authority and to fines for breach of the Competition Law. 

The Israeli Competition Director General fined MBI and company officers after they spiked the price of a life-saving drug called Leadiant by hundreds of percentage points.

In the case in question, there was no abuse of authority in the work relationship between the defendant and the complainant, since the complainant was not subordinate to the defendant. However, the defendant abused his position of influence over the complainant, obligating the employer to conduct investigation  in accordance with a different set of standards.

An amendment to the Israeli Consumer Protection Law, also known as the “Do Not Call Me Law,” is about to enter the enforcement phase on January 1, 2023. Inter alia, the law imposes liability on a business telemarketing its product or service, even if a third party is actually making the call.

The Israel Securities Authority is seeking to expand its power. If its draft bill is accepted, this will have far-reaching consequences, as the ISA will have the power to investigate offenses related to fraud, bribery, money laundering, and cryptocurrencies (which the ISA considers to be securities).

Activity in the form of financial decentralization (Decentralized Finance - DeFi) does not exempt from requirements in the field of prevention of money laundering prohibition or compliance with sanctions. It turns out that DeFi is subject to the same "laws of gravity" as projects in the traditional financial industry.

The Israeli National Labor Court awarded ILS 300,000 to the employee after a regional labor court awarded the employee only ILS 60,000.

The Israel Securities Authority’s (ISA) new draft amendment to the general permit to offer foreign brokerage services in Israel proposes to obligate permit holders to supervise the activities of marketers on their behalf. For example, permit holders must carry out due diligence examinations of marketers.

New privacy protection regulations drafted by the Israeli Ministry of Justice will obligate Israeli entities to protect data reaching Israel from the European Economic Area, i.e., from EU member states and Iceland, Norway, and Liechtenstein.

The Israeli National Labor Court’s ruling indicates there is no fixed or standard format for the proper conduct of an investigation pursuant to the Prevention of Sexual Harassment Law. Rather, complaints should be clarified within their specific context and considering the unique issues that arise during the process.

While substantial defects were found in the nonprofit organization (amutah), the court accepted and approved a settlement. Issuing a dissolution order to the amutah would have affected a large community of people that require its services.

The use of token-based compensation has grown in recent years. It is important to understand the tax aspects of such compensation, especially when a company is gearing up for a major deal.

The Israeli Privacy Protection Authority recently published a document presenting its position and recommendations on the privacy protection aspects pertinent to waivers of medical confidentiality and disclosures of medical information during the hiring process.