Amir Yaron

Bank of Israel head urges lenders to pay fair interest on deposits, current accounts

Central bank chief instructs banks to fully pass on interest rates to deposit holders and come up with a plan to pay interest on the billions of shekels sitting in current accounts

June 20, 2023, 5:08 pm

Bank of Israel head urges lenders to pay fair interest on deposits, current accounts

Central bank chief instructs banks to fully pass on interest rates to deposit holders and come up with a plan to pay interest on the billions of shekels sitting in current accounts

By Sharon Wrobel

Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu arrives at a meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem on January 29, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

June 18, 2023, 11:32 am

Far-right minister calls Bank of Israel governor a ‘savage’; Netanyahu condemns

Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu receives wide criticism for comments accusing Amir Yaron of ‘sullying Israel’s name abroad and harming the credit rating’

By ToI Staff

June 6, 2023, 3:17 pm

Bank of Israel veteran selected as new banking supervisor

Daniel Hahiashvili will replace Yari Avidan on June 22; sees his role as ensuring stability of banks while boosting competition and technological innovation

By Sharon Wrobel

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich speaks at the Israel Democracy Institute (IDI) conference in Jerusalem, May 30, 2023. (Michal Fattal)

May 30, 2023, 7:54 pm

Smotrich seeks to tax banks’ fat profits from steady interest rate hikes

Bank of Israel head urges local banks to improve services by actively offering interest-bearing deposits to their customers; hints at further rate increases

By Sharon Wrobel

UTJ MK and Deputy Knesset Speaker Yisrael Eichler (right) during a vote in the Knesset, in Jerusalem, on December 28, 2022. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90)

May 22, 2023, 12:33 pm

UTJ MK: ‘The government is not in our hands,’ Bank of Israel chief should quit

Yisrael Eichler says government power rests in hands of deep state and bureaucrats, who he compares to Russia’s Putin; blasts failure of interest rate hikes to bring down inflation

By ToI Staff

Foreign Minister Eli Cohen at a ceremony in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jerusalem, January 2, 2023. (Olivier Fitoussi/ Flash90)

April 24, 2023, 5:23 am

Foreign minister lauds expansion of Israeli diplomatic clout into Eurasia region

In ToI interview, Eli Cohen talks up Israel’s recent diplomatic achievements, defends Azerbaijan arms sales, and says he wants another year in office despite deal with Israel Katz

By Tal Schneider

The new 100 Israeli Shekel bill, December 31, 2017. (Nati Shohat/Flash90)

April 12, 2023, 6:57 pm

Shekel continues to decline, hits two-year low against the euro

Currency currently trading at 3.68 to the dollar and 4.02 to the euro, ahead of Moody’s country credit rating update on Friday

By ToI Staff

Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli, seen during a discussion and a vote in the assembly hall of the Knesset, in Jerusalem, on March 6, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

April 4, 2023, 5:00 pm

Cabinet minister: Bank of Israel chief sabotaging economy with overhaul criticism

Amichai Chikli accuses Amir Yaron of putting politics first by giving foreign press gloomy predictions about government’s plans

By ToI Staff

Bank of Israel Governor Amir Yaron attends a cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem, on February 23, 2023. (RONEN ZVULUN / POOL / AFP)

April 3, 2023, 7:34 pm

Bank of Israel hikes rate to 4.5%, warns judicial shakeup could badly harm economy

Central bank lifts rates by 0.25%, smallest rise since April; in its pessimistic scenario, potential impact of overhaul could be $14-billion annual hit to GDP over next 3 years

By Sharon Wrobel

Bank of Israel Governor Amir Yaron arrives at a cabinet meeting on the state budget at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem, February 23, 2023. (Alex Kolomoisky/POOL)

March 28, 2023, 1:28 pm

Bank of Israel head issues new warning on overhaul, says bodies’ independence vital

In letter to cabinet alongside central bank’s annual report for 2022, Amir Yaron writes that major changes must be done with broad agreement, preserve institutions’ professionality

By ToI Staff

Bank of Israel Governor Amir Yaron speaks in an interview with CNN aired March 15, 2023. (Screenshot: CNN; used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

March 15, 2023, 10:23 am

Bank of Israel chief comes out against ‘hasty’ overhaul that could harm judiciary

Amir Yaron tells CNN plan lacks consensus, which could lead firms to move funds out of country, causing brain drain; voices confidence leaders won’t intervene in central bank

By Michael Bachner

Shlomo Dovrat speaks to Channel 12 news on February 24, 2023. (Screenshot: Channel 12)

February 25, 2023, 8:31 pm

Top investor: Economy ‘in terrible danger,’ overhaul crisis must be solved in days

Shlomo Dovrat, whose company manages over $1.3 billion in tech, says he has ‘never seen such concern among foreign investors,’ warns billions of dollars leaving Israel every day

By ToI Staff

Bank of Israel Governor Amir Yaron speaks at a conference in Tel Aviv, on November 29, 2022. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90)

February 23, 2023, 10:56 pm

Central bank chief said to warn economic crisis could break out at any moment

At state budget meeting, Amir Yaron cautions of potential severe economic fallout from judicial overhaul; Barkat urges dialogue, says he has been warned ‘economy is going to crash’

By ToI Staff

Israelis protest against government plans to overhaul the judicial system outside the Knesset, with the Bank of Israel headquarters seen in the background, February 20, 2023. (AP/Ohad Zwigenberg)

February 23, 2023, 3:04 am

Central bank chief said to call urgent meeting as financial system wobbles

Reported emergency summit of Financial Stability Committee comes after shekel weakens to lowest point in years, compounding worries over rising rate hikes, judicial makeover push

By ToI Staff

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leads a faction meeting of his Likud party at the Knesset in Jerusalem, February 20, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

February 21, 2023, 9:06 am

Netanyahu defends Bank of Israel’s independence after Likud members pan rate hikes

Finance Minister Smotrich acknowledges increases tough on households while dismissing ‘populist’ criticism by members of PM’s party, including call by foreign minister to intervene

By ToI Staff