Israel Association of Actuaries

History

The first actuaries arrived in Israel in the 1920s before the creation of the state of Israel, during the period of the British mandate, as part of the early waves of immigration of the Zionist movement. Inthe 1920s and 1930s, local insurance companies and branches of foreign companies started operations,and the immigrant actuaries were absorbed in the emerging insurance industry.
Most of these immigrant actuaries were of German or Austrian origin, mainly experts in mathematics or physics, who subsequently became actuaries. Professor Shimon Breuer, a mathematician who immigrated in 1933, is generally considered the father of the actuarial profession in Israel. He was the actuary of Migdal Insurance Company, the first Commissioner of Insurance of the state of Israel, and afterwards the first actuary of the National Insurance Institute. The first to arrive in Palestine with a professional actuarial diploma was Dr. Yehuda Gruengard. He became the managing director of Migdal Insurance Company.

The Israel Association of Actuaries was established in 1946 by nine members. It was legally
registered in 1952. When Israel became a state in 1948, there were only 10 actuaries in the country.

The Israel Association of Actuaries began to expand its membership in the 1950s. A number of
actuaries came to Israel from Europe after the end of World War II and acquired experience in Israeli insurance companies and other financial institutions that were in need of actuaries.

From the 1950s until today, the actuarial community has grown considerably. Israeli actuaries are active in international actuarial bodies. They participate in congresses, present papers, publish articles, and contribute their share to the corpus of actuarial knowledge. Israel has been host to overseas actuaries and actuarial conferences.

Education

The first actuarial training course in Israel was held in 1965–1967 at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
Graduates of the course, about 15 in number, are active in the insurance world and the actuarial profession to this day. In 1977, a second course of actuarial studies was started, this time by Tel-Aviv University.

Some of the lecturers were graduates of the previous course at the Hebrew University. Again most of the 22 graduates are active in the field. In 1989, Haifa University set up a course in actuarial studies and a few years later the Israel Association of Actuaries conducted a course to enhance the practical knowledge of graduates of the academic courses in Israel and abroad and examined them for fellowship.

Membership

The Association currently has approximately 160 members, 90 fellows, 25 associates and 45 students.
Most are employed by insurance companies and pension funds; others operate private consulting ser vices and are representatives of overseas insurance and reinsurance companies.
There are four types of members in the Association. They are fellows with the FIAA (Fellow of the Israel Association of Actuaries), associates, students, and academic members. Academic membership is a new category of membership, which recognizes Israeli academics who contribute to actuarial theory and study. Only fellows have the right to vote in elections and at meetings. In the past, Associate status was attained by receiving a diploma of Actuarial Techniques from the Institute of Actuaries. Courses and tests were given by Haifa University and were reviewed by Professor Steven Haberman to determine acceptability to the
Institute standards. Starting from 2001, Haifa University is fully responsible for administering these tests, which are equivalent to the 100 series tests of the Institute. Currently, the Department of Statistics, under the chairmanship of Professor Udi Makov is responsible for these tests. The Association reviews the syllabus on a periodic basis to determine the level of the courses and examinations.

In order to attain fellowship, Associate members have to fulfill an experience requirement, and must also pass additional tests given by the Association. These tests follow the advanced syllabus of the Institute of Actuaries in general insurance, life insurance, and pensions and investments.

Fellowship is granted to full Fellows of the IAA member organizations, subject to the candidate’s Israel Association of Actuaries attaining of one year of work experience in Israel. Many of our members came to Israel from other countries, chiefly the United Kingdom and the United States. There are 14 Fellows of the Institute of Actuaries and 5 Fellows of the Society of Actuaries who are fellows in Israel Association of Actuaries.

Legal Recognition

Currently, the actuarial profession is not formally recognized or defined under Israeli law. However, in 2002, the Insurance Commissioner proposed a law that would establish criteria for the formal recognition of actuaries and grant them considerable responsibilities in determining the solvency of insurance compa nies and pension plans. The Association is working with the Insurance Commissioner’s office regarding the proposed law. Committees have been established to propose to the Commissioner’s office, regulations regarding the law.

Meetings

The Association meets about five times annually. Both local and international speakers discuss topics of actuarial interest in Israel and the world. Biannually, the Association’s members gather for a gala dinner.

Contact information for the Association and for its officers can be found on its web page at

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