Charity is nice, now for returns: World's Jews betting on Israeli stocks

The millions upon millions of Jewish Federation dollars coming into Israel each year have typically targeted one cause: charity. But that may soon be a thing of the past.

In recent months, several high-profile North American federations have invested significant sums of their endowment money in Israeli stocks. And others, having taken note, are poised to follow suit.

For organizations that have traditionally seen their main connection to Israel through the prism of philanthropy, it could be a game changer, says the man who has been holding their hand through this process. This is especially the case considering that the Jewish federations manage close to $15 billion in endowment funds.

“Until now, most of this federation money has been invested in U.S. stocks, foreign stocks, hedge funds and private equity - completely separate from where they give their money, most notably Israel,” Steven Schoenfeld, the founder and chief investor of New York-based BlueStar Global Investors, told Haaretz.

http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/jewish-ga/.premium-1.557854