The Fed Is Now The Proud Owner Of Bankrupt Hertz Bonds

On March 23 - the day the S&P dropped to its cycle low of 2,237 - the Fed stunned capital markets when it announced it would purchase investment grade corporate bonds, traversing a Rubicon into secondary market intervention that not even Ben Bernanke had dared to cross. A few weeks later, on April 9, the Fed doubled down by announcing it would purchase not only junk bonds from "fallen angel" issuers (an announcement which came just days after a quarter in which a record $150BN in investment grade bonds were downgraded to junk, starting the long awaited tsunami of "fallen angels"), but would also buy junk bond ETFs such as HYG and JNK.

This is what the Fed's Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facilities term sheet said on this topic:

The Facility also may purchase U.S.-listed ETFs whose investment objective is to provide broad exposure to the market for U.S. corporate bonds. The preponderance of ETF holdings will be of ETFs whose primary investment objective is exposure to U.S. investment-grade corporate bonds, and the remainder will be in ETFs whose primary investment objective is exposure to U.S. high-yield corporate bonds

Naturally, the news cheered beaten down markets, and was enough to send junk bond ETFs such as JNK and HYG soaring.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/fed-now-proud-owner-bankrupt-hertz-bonds

As his trial begins, Netanyahu rails against ‘attempted political coup’

Arriving at Jerusalem court, PM accuses police and prosecutors of inventing ‘baseless cases’ against him, says probes ‘were corrupted and fabricated from the start’

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday appeared in court for the start of his corruption trial, and ripped into police and prosecutors as he became the first Israeli premier to stand trial on criminal charges while in office.

Flanked by ministers and lawmakers from his Likud party, Netanyahu delivered televised remarks before the start of the hearing at the Jerusalem District Court, declaring that all his right-wing supporters were on trial along with him.

“Elements in the police and State Attorney’s Office banded together with left-wing journalists… to fabricate baseless cases against me,” he charged. “The goal is to oust a strong right-wing prime minister and to banish the right-wing camp from leadership of the country for many years.”

“I’m not a poodle… and therefore they need to remove me by any means,” he said.

Netanyahu blasted the police who led the probes into him, saying officers made up claims that he had sent private sleuths to track investigators and that he had prompted a female officer to complain of sexual harassment against the head of the anti-corruption unit.

“These investigations were corrupted and fabricated from the start,” he said.

The premier claimed “the band of anyone-but-Bibi” sought to interfere in two of the three elections over the past year in a bid to hurt Likud at the polls. He pointed to the police recommendation that he be charged ahead of the April 2019 elections and Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit’s decision to indict him before the latest elections in March.

“They did everything so I wouldn’t stand here today as prime minister,” he said.

start of his corruption trial at the Jerusalem District Court on May 24, 2020. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday appeared in court for the start of his corruption trial, and ripped into police and prosecutors as he became the first Israeli premier to stand trial on criminal charges while in office.

Flanked by ministers and lawmakers from his Likud party, Netanyahu delivered televised remarks before the start of the hearing at the Jerusalem District Court, declaring that all his right-wing supporters were on trial along with him.

“Elements in the police and State Attorney’s Office banded together with left-wing journalists… to fabricate baseless cases against me,” he charged. “The goal is to oust a strong right-wing prime minister and to banish the right-wing camp from leadership of the country for many years.”

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“I’m not a poodle… and therefore they need to remove me by any means,” he said.

Netanyahu blasted the police who led the probes into him, saying officers made up claims that he had sent private sleuths to track investigators and that he had prompted a female officer to complain of sexual harassment against the head of the anti-corruption unit.

“These investigations were corrupted and fabricated from the start,” he said.

The premier claimed “the band of anyone-but-Bibi” sought to interfere in two of the three elections over the past year in a bid to hurt Likud at the polls. He pointed to the police recommendation that he be charged ahead of the April 2019 elections and Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit’s decision to indict him before the latest elections in March.

“They did everything so I wouldn’t stand here today as prime minister,” he said.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, surrounded by Likud lawmakers, gives a televised statement before the start of his corruption trial at the Jerusalem District Court on May 24, 2020. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Netanyahu touted the support Likud received in the last elections, calling it a “vote of confidence” in him and a “vote of no confidence” in those who investigated and pressed charges against him.

“I stand here today as your prime minister with my back straight and my head held high,” he said.

He again urged for the proceedings against him to be broadcast live — a request already rejected by Jerusalem District Court judges — and called for the recordings of Mandelblit from the so-called Harpaz affair, which the attorney general was never charged in, to be released.

Netanyahu also claimed witnesses were intimidated into testifying against him.

“This is the rule of law? This is democracy?” he said, asserting there was no precedent for charging a politician for allegedly trading favors for positive news coverage.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/as-his-trial-begins-netanyahu-rails-against-attempted-political-coup/

Intel CEO: We think of ourselves as an Israeli company as much as a US company

“I just want to say that it will be centered here in Jerusalem."

MARCH 15, 2017

Intel’s $15 billion plans to acquire Jerusalem’s Mobileye not only demonstrate the company’s belief in Israeli innovation, but also position the country to become the global leader in autonomous driving, according to the chip giant’s CEO, Brian Krzanich.

“We think of ourselves as an Israeli company as much as a US company,” Krzanich said at a Jerusalem press conference on Tuesday evening at the Prime Minister’s Office.

The day before, Intel declared its intentions to acquire Israel’s autonomous driving company Mobileye for about $15 billion – the biggest deal to hit the country’s hi-tech industry. Alongside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Economy Minister Eli Cohen and Mobileye’s leaders Ziv Aviram and Amnon Shashua, Krzanich stressed how the deal will enable Israel to accelerate and steer the international autonomous vehicle industry.

“This is one of the largest acquisitions in Israel, but it’s also the second-largest acquisition effort that Intel has done in history of the company,” he said.

The firms announced a definitive agreement on Monday for Intel to acquire Mobileye, a global leader in the development of computer vision and machine learning for advanced driver assistance systems and autonomous driving. According to the agreement, an Intel subsidiary will launch a tender to acquire all of the outstanding ordinary shares of Mobileye for $63.54 per share in cash, amounting to an equity value of about $15.3b. and an enterprise value of $14.7b.

While Intel is acquiring Mobileye, the companies have decided to base their future autonomous driving operations at Mobileye’s Jerusalem headquarters, with the company’s cofounder, chairman and CTO Amnon Shashua leading operations there.

“I am really excited about this collaboration,” Krzanich said. “I just want to say that it will be centered here in Jerusalem, led by Amnon. He will lead Intel’s overall autonomous vehicle efforts, across the whole company, not just here in Israel. We will be folding in operations in the US underneath the operations here.”

The forthcoming acquisition, which is expected to be concluded in about nine months, marks Intel’s regard for the innovation that comes out of Israel, where the company has had operations for 40 years, according to Krzanich.

The deal also speaks to Intel’s understanding that autonomous vehicles are going to make the world a safer environment, with lower energy usage and improved city life, he said.

With Intel’s autonomous driving operations about be headquartered in Israel, under Mobileye’s Shashua, the country will have an opportunity “to lead how these autonomous vehicles go out on their own, interact with cities, interact with government agencies and really set the standards for how this gets implemented into the world,” Krzanich added.

Netanyahu and Cohen praised the deal, both stressing how important the acquisition will be for the Israeli economy and for the country’s image as a hi-tech hub worldwide.

“This opens up avenues for the Israeli economy, for growth that we see, for all our collective and individual purposes,” Netanyahu said.

https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Intel-CEO-We-think-of-ourselves-as-an-Israeli-company-as-much-as-a-US-company-484209

Microsoft’s Bill Gates: Israel is a vital resource for us

December 2, 2002

Expressing confidence in the future of Israeli technology, Microsoft chairman Bill Gates said that his company will expand its investment in Israel in the future.

“We are investing and continue to invest in our research and development in Israel. Our team in Israel has recently been handed with some challenging and ambitious tasks. They are working with new developments, particularly in

the field of digital security. In this area Israel has an impressive record of accomplishment,” Gates said.

Gates made his remarks to the Hebrew daily Yediot Aharonot at the Comdex convention in Las Vegas held in November.

Microsoft has a history of investing in Israeli brainpower. Microsoft Israel, founded in 1989, is one of the few Microsoft outposts abroad fully owned and operated by the U.S. company. The Microsoft research and development center in Haifa is one of a small group of overseas centers

involved developing new products for the U.S. based company.

Gates said that despite the political and security situation, Israel continues to represent the leading edge of innovation, and Microsoft will continue to be a part of it.

“There is no connection between the war that Israel is fighting and the future of the technology that is being created there,” he said. “The vast success of Israel is connected to the excellence of its population. By this

I mean the level and quality of the education that is being acquired in Israeli universities and the knowledge that the immigrants coming to Israel bring with them,” Gates said.

“Because of these factors, Israel has become a place in which the biggest technology companies recruited high-tech brilliance. But since many of these Israelis wanted to stay in their country, we had to open large research and development centers in Israel.”

He said while the company is always concerned about the welfare of its employees, security concerns “won’t stop us from deepening our activities in Israel.”

https://www.israel21c.org/microsofts-bill-gates-israel-is-a-vital-resource-for-us/

In Surprise Move, Microsoft Israel's R&D Center Names New 34-year-old CEO

Assaf Rappaport, who joined Microsoft after it purchased his cloud security startup, will manage 1,000 employees at one of the leading R&D centers in the world

Asaff Rappaport is a graduate of israeli military intelligence Unit 8200 and Talpiot Program and is mentored by Zohar Zisapel.

The 34-year-old Rappaport, who began his new position on Thursday, replaces Yoram Yaacovi, who stepped down a few months ago. Microsoft’s research and development facility in Israel, with its approximately 1,000 employees, is considered one of the corporation’s leading R&D centers in the world.

Rappaport joined Microsoft in 2015 after it purchased the cloud security startup Adallom, which he founded together with two partners, Ami Luttwak and Roy Reznik. After a number of promotions, his most recent role has been head of cloud security, a unit that has grown to employ hundreds of people. In addition to Adallom, Microsoft also acquired the cyber-security startups Secure Islands and Aorato.

Rappaport will continue to head the Cloud Security group at Microsoft Israel in addition to his new appointment.

Rappaport, who is a graduate of the elite Israeli military Talpiot program, studied mathematics, physics and computer science at the Hebrew University and holds a master’s degree in computer science from the Technion in Haifa. He served for six years in the Israeli army’s 8200 signal intelligence and code decryption unit. He subsequently works for the Australian consulting firm McKinsey, after which he established Adallom, which was sold in less than three years for approximately $320 million.

"Microsoft has been undergoing a real revolution in the past few years. This is a company that with a culture of excellence, daring and innovation. Microsoft empowers its people, grows with them, and challenges them to achieve more. I am proud to lead this revolution in Israel,” Rappaport said upon his appointment.

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/microsoft-israel-s-r-d-center-names-new-34-year-old-ceo-1.5746060