Insurance and finance group Phoenix Financial (TASE: PHOE) is in negotiations for the acquisition of digital gift cards company BuyMe from the Shahar and Kass families, owners of the Mayer vehicle importing and holdings group. The deal is estimated to embody a valuation of BuyMe, which has the largest market share in the field, of about NIS 1 billion.
It is believed that the Phoenix group will execute the deal through the publicly traded parent company and not through Phoenix Insurance, since the latter holds shares in Mayer, which could make completion of the deal difficult from a regulatory point of view.
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BuyMe was founded in 2010 by Mich Berkuz, Shai Darin, and Tal Zuri. The Mayer group invested in the company at an early stage through Teleclal, and in 2020 it bought out the founders at a valuation of NIS 250 million, against a background of differences of opinion between the founders and Teleclal over the company’s strategic direction.
For the Shahar and Kass families this is their second substantial exit of recent years. Three years ago, they sold 20% of the Mayer group, which imports Volvo and Honda vehicles to Israel, to insurance companies Phoenix and Clal, at a valuation of NIS 4.1 billion. The basis of the deal was the decision by the two families to arrange an orderly transfer of control in Mayer to the next generation. After the deal was completed, Avner Kass and Or Shahar, grandsons of the company’s founder, the late Mayer Kass, were appointed joint chairpersons of the company.
Besides importing the Volvo and Honda brands, the Mayer group also controls Hertz Israel, Auto Center, and public transport company Kavim, and owns Maccabi Haifa Football Club (which like BuyMe was not included in the deals with Phoenix and Clal).
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on February 2, 2026.
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd., 2026.
