Overview
Mizrahi Tefahot Bank Ltd., ("Mizrahi Tefahot") is incorporated and existing under the laws of the State of Israel and was established as a public limited company by shares on June 6, 1923. In 1963, Mizrahi Tefahot's shares were first listed for trading on the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange.
Mizrahi Tefahot is Israel's third largest bank based on value of assets and offers a complete range of international, commercial, domestic and personal banking services. Its total assets as of December 31, 2025 amounted to USD 172.78 billion, and for the 12 months ended December 31, 2025, Mizrahi Tefahot reported USD 2859.25 million of operating profit before taxes, USD 1764.9 million of net profit, and a return on equity of 17%.
Mizrahi Tefahot's controlling shareholders, the Ofer and Wertheim groups, currently hold about 41.25% of its shares, with the remaining outstanding shares owned by the public who hold shares on the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange. As of December 31, 2025, Mizrahi Tefahot Group operates through 206 branches and business centres in Israel (including 56 branches of its subsidiary, Bank Yahav for Government Employees Ltd), and two foreign branches in London and Los Angeles.
On October 7, 2023 the Iron Swords war was declared following a sudden murderous rampage into settlements close to the Gaza Strip border. This was concurrently with the start of military escalation on the Northern border.
On May 29, 2025, S&P GLOBAL RATINGS MAALOT LTD (hereinafter: "Maalot") affirmed the Bank's ilAAA issuer rating of and changed the rating outlook from negative to stable. Contingent subordinated notes with contractual loss-absorption provisions (CoCo), which qualify as Tier II equity in conformity with provisions of Basel III, are rated ilAA- by Maalot.
On August 10, 2025, Midroog Ltd. (created in partnership with Moody's International, which owns a 51% equity stake) (hereinafter: "Midroog") left the Bank's ratings unchanged. Long-term deposits and senior debt of the Bank are rated Aaa.il / Stable outlook. Contingent subordinated notes with contractual loss-absorption provisions (CoCo), which qualify as Tier II equity in conformity with provisions of Basel III, are rated Aa3.il(hyb)/Stable outlook.
During the Iron Swords War all three international rating agencies downgraded the State of Israel’s credit rating, which, in turn, led to the downgrading of the Bank’s credit rating. The Bank’s ratings were revised at a later stage:
On May 29, 2025, rating agency S&P Global Ratings (hereinafter: "S&P") affirmed the long-term issuer credit rating at BBB+. The agency affirmed the Bank’s short-term issuer credit rating of A-2, and upgraded the rating outlook from negative to stable. The senior dollar-denominated unsecured bond series is rated by the rating agency at BBB+. The series was issued on January 28, 2026. In addition, the agency rated the contingent subordinated notes with loss-absorption provisions, which qualify as Tier II equity, at BBB-. The series were issued on April 7, 2021 and January 15, 2026.
On October 29, 2025, the rating agency Fitch Ratings (hereinafter - "Fitch") affirmed the Bank’s Long-Term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at A- and the Bank’s Short Term IDR at F1. In addition, the rating agency upgraded the Bank's rating outlook from "negative" to "stable", which reflects the Bank’s stability when faced with the challenges in the environment it has been operating in since the outbreak of the Iron Swords War, and the agency’s assessment that the risks have subsided. The rating of the senior dollar-denominated unsecured bond series is A-. The series was issued on January 28, 2026. The rating of the series of subordinated notes with loss-absorption mechanism which are eligible for recognition as Tier II capital is BBB. The series were issued on April 7, 2021 and January 15, 2026.
On February 3, 2026, Moody's rating agency (hereinafter: "Moody's") affirmed the Bank’s long-term deposit rating at Baa1and the Bank's short-term deposit rating at P-2. The rating outlook was upgraded from negative to stable following the upgrading of the rating outlook of the State of Israel.
The current rating of the State of Israel is as follows:
S&P rates the State of Israel at a rating of A (Stable Outlook).
Fitch rates the State of Israel at a rating of A (Negative Outlook).
The rating assigned by Moody’s to the State of Israel is Baa1 (the rating outlook was upgraded from Negative to Stable on January 30, 2026).
