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The Central Bank of Ireland has stopped authorizing Israeli bond sales in the European Union as of Monday, ending its role as regulator after the approval for Israel’s 2024 bond prospectus expired on September 1 over the mounting humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Ireland was the sole regulator of the bonds issued by the Development Company for Israel, meaning that without its approval, the securities could not be legally marketed across the E.U.
The issue gained political traction in Ireland as campaigners and opposition lawmakers linked the bonds to Israel’s ongoing military offensive in Gaza. The Development Company for Israel (International) Ltd, which markets the debt on Israel’s behalf, presented the bonds as general financing tools. Activists argued they were promoted in the context of Israel raising funds for the war in Gaza.
Ireland's Central Bank Governor Gabriel Makhlouf confirmed the change in a letter to Ireland’s parliamentary finance committee on Monday, stating that Luxembourg’s regulator approved a new 2025 prospectus on the same day, effective September 2, The Irish Times reported.
However, as Luxembourg has been instated as the regulator, Israel can continue raising money from investors across the E.U.
The Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign welcomed the end of Dublin’s role, calling it a "victory for the people of Ireland who stand resolutely in solidarity with the people of Palestine.” Sinn Fein deputy Mairead Farrell said Ireland “must have no hand, act or part" in what she described as genocide.
Other opposition lawmakers also praised the outcome, while voicing concern that Luxembourg had stepped in. Paul Murphy of People Before Profit credited the global Palestine solidarity movement for pushing Ireland to act.
Social Democrat Gary Gannon said no E.U. institution should facilitate bond sales used to support military operations, criticizing the wider European Union for what he called a failure to respond firmly to the Gaza crisis.
Israel’s military campaign has killed nearly 63,500 Palestinians in Gaza since October 2023.
The enclave has been left in ruins and faces famine, after the United Nations (UN) declared in August the first-ever famine in the Middle East, stating that more than 500,000 Palestinians face catastrophic hunger due to Israel’s blockade of international aid.
The deepening violence has increased international pressure on countries and companies to take action against Israel, as the UK and France prepare to recognize Palestine as an independent state at the UN.
In one of the boldest moves from the business community, the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, Norges Bank Investment Management, announced that it had divested nearly $3 billion from Israeli firms and other companies cooperating with them.
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