Ampal-American Israel Corporation (Nasdaq: AMPL; TASE:AMPL) chairman Yosef Maiman's motion for a NIS 18 million tax offset has resulted in the disclosure of his assets. The motion filed yesterday with the Central District Court to order the Israel Tax Authority to offset the tax owed on his sale of East Mediterranean Gas Company (EMG) shares to Ampal lists all Maiman's tangible and intangible assets. The list includes his NIS 50 million house in Herzliya, a second NIS 32.5 million house in the city, and apartments in Miami and in New York's Soho neighborhood.
Maiman also listed two yachts: the NOA7, worth $20 million, and Moonshadow, worth NIS 2.5 million, and several cars: a 2005 Jaguar, 2010 Subaru, 2004 Landrover, and 1997 BMW. His and his wife's bank accounts include an account at Israel Discount Bank with NIS 40 million, an account at Union Bank of Israel with NIS 4.4 million, an account at Bank Hapoalim with a few hundred thousand shekels. The amounts include accumulated interest. He also has securities portfolios at Bank Hapoalim worth NIS 300,000 and at Union Bank worth NIS 331,000. At Bank Leumi, he has one account with NIS 120,000 and a second account with an overdraft of NIS 150,000. He also has bank accounts at Citigroup in Switzerland, London, and New York with $190,000 altogether.
Maiman's company holdings include 100% of Merhav Group, through which he owns stakes in Ampal, EMG, and other companies.
Maiman declared that his liabilities include NIS 70 million in mortgages on his homes, NIS 30 million in loans on his yachts, and liens on his cars totaling NIS 253,000.
Maiman has asked the court for a declaratory order stating that Merhav Group is eligible for the tax offset of NIS 18 million against payments by postdated checks to the Tax Authority under the settlement with the Haifa Assessor's Office. He has also asked the court to order the Tax Authority to halt, or at least postpone, all collection procedures against him.
The motion involves Merhav Group's sale of shares in Egyptian gas exporter EMG to Ampal in a parties at interest deal, mostly in shares and partly in cash. In 2010, Maiman settled with the Tax Authority to separate and reschedule the tax payments for each part of the sale. The settlement set the capital gain on the cash part of the deal at NIS 22 million (in principal terms), to be paid in 24 equal payments, and set the capital gain on the shares part of the deal at NIS 97.6 million (in principal terms), half of which was deferred for three years, and half was deferred for four years from the date the settlement was signed. Maiman argues that this part of the payment only falls due after December 2013. In 2011, his request for a further deferment was approved, and he gave the Tax Authority post-dated checks for the tax payment.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on October 10, 2012
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2012