The IDB Bankholding Co., parent company of the IDB Development Bank and the Israel Discount Bank, announced yesterday a 1983 compared to a net profit of 2.081 billion Shekels ($19.3 million) in 1982.
IDB was the last of Israel’s four largest banks to publish its annual balance sheet for last year. The others — Bank Leumi, Bank Hapoalim and the Mizrachi Bank — all registered substantial losses.
Like the other banks, the IDB’s balance was adjusted for inflation and capital erosion, on the recommendation of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Without such adjustments, IDB would have shown a considerable profit, bank sources said.
The Israel Discount Bank alone had an adjusted net loss of 4.122 billion Shekels ($38 million) last year. All four of the largest banks participated in a government scheme to artificially support the prices of their securities sold to the public.
The plan was initiated last year because the sharp devaluation of the Shekel caused investors to dump their bank shares in order to purchase U.S. Dollars. The Shekel is now pegged at 180 to $1.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
