Nochi Dankner gambles on Las Vegas

Nochi Dankner controls the IDB Holding group, which lost NIS 2.3 billion in value this year. His personal loss on paper is NIS 700 million.

IDB engages in real estate too, but in many more things as well, a diversification that worked in its favor this year. Dankner takes pride in being one of the first to foresee the financial crisis, and raised more than NIS 10 billion in bonds ahead of time, extending the duration of his debt (which eases his need for liquidity).

In October he flew the company Bombardier to Switzerland and bought 3.4% of Credit Suisse, on which he's lost about 200 million Swiss francs at this stage. During the year he also took advantage of the falling share prices of group companies to beef up IDB's stakes, and tried to sell Koor Industries, though that didn't work out. Group companies Elron (high tech) and Clal Insurance didn't do well. But others such as Cellcom, Super-Sol, Clal Insurance and Makhteshim-Agan did just fine, presenting IDB with large dividends.

Property & Building on the other hand lost NIS 2 billion in value as its stock sank 67.5%, for which it can thank mainly its adventure in Las Vegas. With Yitzhak Tshuva, Dankner bought land for $1.25 billion to build a mega-casino resort at an investment of up to $8 billion. Construction has been delayed, however, and the parties are trying to extend $625 million borrowed to buy the land.

But IDB remains liquid: It has to repay NIS 3 billion in 2009 and has liquid assets of NIS 11 billion. Dankner predicts that the global crisis will bottom out in six months, at which time IDB can embark on a worldwide buying spree. His investment in Credit Suisse could yet place Dankner at the center of the world financial sector.