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20h ago

Norway’s Wealth Fund Divests From 11 Israeli Companies Citing Gaza Crisis

By centralizing its Israeli mandates under direct control, the fund aims to intensify ethics oversight.

Visitors enter the headquarters of the Norges Bank, Norway's central bank, in Oslo, Norway, on Tuesday, October 17, 2023.
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The Flag of Norway and the EU are seen in front of the Berlaymont, the EU Commission headquarter on April 7, 2025 in Brussels, Belgium.

Overview

  • The fund has sold its stakes in 11 Israeli companies, including its holding in Bet Shemesh Engines, and terminated contracts with external managers, moving all Israeli mandates in-house.
  • It will restrict future investments to firms listed in Norway’s finance ministry equity benchmark index, though it will not hold every index component.
  • The fund held equity in 61 Israeli companies worth around $2 billion as of June and its ethics council is now reviewing additional holdings, including stakes in five banks.
  • The move follows an urgent review ordered by Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg after media exposed the Bet Shemesh stake and comes after parliament in June rejected a proposal for blanket divestment from occupied territories.
  • CEO Nicolai Tangen described the actions as responses to “extraordinary circumstances” driven by a serious humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the West Bank, reflecting a broader European trend of reducing ties to Israeli firms.