Halutz seeks compensation from Bank Leumi over potfolio sale leak

Last week, when Dan Halutz stepped down as the Israel Defense Forces chief of staff, he used the event to level harsh criticism at some of his colleagues, at the media and at Israeli society. Now it appears he also wants to settle a score with Bank Leumi.

TheMarker has learned that Halutz is demanding financial compensation from Leumi for leaking the sale of his investment portfolio on the first day of the war in Lebanon last summer. Halutz's lawyers have sent a letter to the bank's management concerning his demands, and the parties have held one meeting.

Leumi has rejected Halutz's demand. Even so, the parties' lawyers are continuing their contacts in an attempt to reach a compromise. At this stage it is still uncertain whether Halutz will receive financial compensation or if he'll make do with an apology. Halutz's claim is apparently based on the bank's violation of client confidentiality.

For this article, Leumi and the IDF spokesman declined comment.

The report that Halutz had sold his fund portfolio sparked strong criticism against him and was among the factors that led to the decline in public faith in him. On the day the war broke out, reserve soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev were kidnapped. The IDF pursued their captors into Lebanon and several soldiers were killed. That day Halutz spoke to a clerk at Leumi's Dizengoff Street branch in Tel Aviv and ordered a sale worth NIS 160,000.

Leumi officials say the information on the sale of the portfolio was not leaked by the bank. A few days after the publication of the sale, the bank reported that a special internal investigation team appointed by Leumi CEO Galia Maor had found that the bank was not the source of the leak. Details of the team's report, however, have never been publicized, such as which bank workers were questioned and which questions were asked.