Israel Bonds Announces Alternative BDS Campaign on Campus

Israel Bonds’ New ‘Alternative BDS’ Initiative

Takes Direct Aim at Anti-Israel Activism on Campus

Bonds Donated to Schools initiative seeks to grow long-term Israel support on college campuses

 

NEW YORK–As college students return to college campuses this fall, Israel Bonds is heightening emphasis on its new initiative, The Alternative BDS: Bonds Donated to Schools, intended to serve as a counterweight to anti-Israel activism on campus.

The initiative encourages Israel’s supporters to oppose BDS on campus by donating long-term Israel bonds (five or ten-year maturities) to their college or university of choice. Because the institution must hold the bonds until maturity, donating Israel bonds encourages and facilitates educational institutions to be invested in Israel for a sustained period of time.

The initiative seeks to attract major donors to universities as well as students, fraternities and recent graduates who want to stay connected to their school, have personally experienced BDS on campus, or both.

Bonds President and CEO Izzy Tapoohi said, “Through The Alternative BDS, Israel Bonds and its supporters have an important, direct role to play in countering calls for divestment at universities. Donating Israel bonds to universities fights BDS on two levels — it is a concrete, personal means of rejecting pervasive anti-Israel activity on campus, and it is also a direct repudiation of the movement’s principal goal of damaging the country financially.”

Tapoohi noted BDS efforts have largely failed in this regard, citing a June headline from Bloomberg: “The Boycott Israel Movement May be Failing.” The article states, “Signs (are) that an international movement to isolate Israel is gaining ground. Yet an examination of foreign capital flow into the country shows the opposite trend — a steep increase. Foreign investments in Israeli assets hit a record high last year of $285.12 billion, a near-tripling from 2005 when the so-called Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement was started by a group of Palestinians.”

Tapoohi added, “BDS agitators have had no impact whatsoever on sales of Israel bonds, whether it be from our loyal retail clients or institutional investors.” He pointed to significantly higher U.S. sales since 2011, including three consecutive years — 2013-2015 — in which U.S. sales exceeded $1 billion. Total U.S. sales since 2011 have surpassed $5 billion. 

 

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More on Israel Bonds

Israel bonds are debt securities issued by the government of Israel. Israel Bonds is also the commonly known name of Development Corporation for Israel (DCI), which underwrites the bonds in the United States. DCI is a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) member broker-dealer. The bonds can help preserve capital, diversify personal or corporate investment portfolios, and provide protection from market fluctuations. Israel bonds are versatile securities that currently pay strong rates.

Capital provided through the sale of Israel bonds has helped strengthen every aspect of Israel’s economy, enabling the development of key national infrastructure. Today, expanded ports and transportation networks help facilitate the shipment of “Made in Israel” technology around the world, enhancing national export growth. Capital accrued through the sale of Israel bonds has enabled cutting-edge innovation that saves lives and changes the world on a daily basis.