Lubavitcher is Key to Deal

By COLlive reporter

One of Israel’s richest businessmen will have his eyes set on a Lubavitcher chossid to help save the debt-ridden IDB conglomerate he owns.

Embattled tycoon Nochi Dankner welcomed Argentinean billionaire Eduardo Elsztain in Israel on Tuesday, hoping for a substantial cash investment to keep his telecommunications, supermarket chain, paper and cement companies afloat.

Elsztain arrived during a crucial week for the conglomerate, as a court will take up a bondholder proposal that could wrest control of the company from Dankner, the Jerusalem Post said.

Having dealt with three debt crises of his own as a businessman, most of them a result of Argentina’s macroeconomic instability, Elsztain said Dankner’s situation compelled him, and he saw a good business opportunity, the Post reported.

“The reason of my trip is only to confirm that we are ready to move forward,” Elsztain said just hours after touching down. “We are really ready to move forward very seriously. We have the funds to move very fast.”

Elsztain’s infusion of cash won’t be without supervision.

“Alongside Elsztain today was a guy named Sholom Lapidus, a charedi entrepreneur, the son of one of the wealthiest families in Buenos Aires,” Israel’s Channel 2 TV reported showing the two together at a press conference.

“He will serve as Elsztain’s representative in Israel if the deal goes through. This is a name you should get to know,” the report on the news program said.

Up until recently, Sholom Lapidus worked in the textile industry in Brazil. His father, R’ Chaim Lapidus owns Cladd SA Argentina, a pioneer in manufacturing of fabrics. Founded in 1976, Cladd stands for Con La Ayuda De Dios (which translates to “With G-d’s Help).”

The two have been seen with Elsztain when he rang the Opening Bell of the New York Stock Exchange in 2011 to honor IRSA, the leading real estate company Elsztain owns in Argentina.

Elsztain and the Lapidus family are major supporters of Chabad institutions and activities in Argentina.