Hapag-Lloyd’s $4.2 billion acquisition of ZIM may be in hot water, with the Israeli government reportedly pushing back on the ocean carrier tie-up.
According to a report from Israeli business newspaper Calcalist, a majority of eight government agencies set to meet on the acquisition Sept. 9 are expected to oppose the deal. The merger would bring together the operations of the fifth and 10th largest ocean carriers.
Hapag-Lloyd and FIMI Opportunity Funds, the Israeli private equity fund that would control ZIM’s fleet of 16 vessels, also still must present their case to the country’s corporate registry and company regulator.
Although the deal has been approved by ZIM shareholders, the acquisition still requires support from the Israeli government in order to go through.
Tzadok Radker, head of Israel’s shipping and ports authority, reiterated his opposition to the deal in a second opinion on the transaction last week, Calcalist said.
Hapag-Lloyd has pledged to establish a new Israeli regional division within Zim, employing 200 people, as well as operate a technology center with 250-to-300 full-time employees. The buyers have also pledged to maintain a regional network of third-party forwarders and logistics providers in Israel, jointly provide services to other countries and guarantee employment for workers for 10 years.
Radker acknowledged the positives in the Hapag-Lloyd proposal, including the employment commitments and the intention to train additional Israeli seafarers.
“The cumulative weight of the positive data presented is limited in relation to the fundamental issues relating to effective control, economic and operational independence, the company’s sustainability over time and the preservation of the national interests underlying the special share (the golden share),” said Radker.
The special state share is a provision designed to protect Israel’s interests in private companies deemed essential for national security.
Much of the Israeli government’s concern appears to be tied to the fact that Hapag-Lloyd would control ZIM’s international operations with the deal.
“Even after the additional information, ZIM Israel continues to be deeply dependent on a foreign factor that influences ZIM Israel’s activities,” the opinion stated. “Control over capacity, accessibility to the international route network, access to key markets, means of production, operating infrastructure and commercial power centers remains with Hapag-Lloyd. Even if a separate Israeli company is established, it is difficult to see it as a fully independent entity in terms of strategy, business and operations.”
SeaLead Shipping liquidates, shuts down
The potential dissolution of the Hapag-ZIM deal follows the collapse of one of the largest and fastest-growing container lines in the world.
Singapore-based SeaLead Shipping filed for liquidation on Aug. 3, ceasing operations after nine years of operation following a series of sanctions from the U.S. alleging links to Iran.
According to container shipping market research firm Alphaliner, the ocean carrier operated 59 ships that could carry as much as 207,000 TEUs at its peak in mid-2025, ranking it as the 13th largest liner operator in the world.
But last July, the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned 16 vessels that were part of SeaLead’s operated fleet at the time over the Iran ties.
In the months after the sanctions, SeaLead reacted by terminating charters for the 16 sanctioned vessels, which accounted for about two-thirds of its overall loss in container capacity by February, according to Alphaliner.
As of Monday, Alphaliner ranked SeaLead 80th in its top 100 carrier list, counting just four vessels carrying 9,400 TEUs. Three of those are OFAC-sanctioned ships.
The most recent sanctions again came last month, with OFAC putting SeaLead as well as subsidiaries in India, Dubai and the Marshall Islands on a specially designated nationals list.
The move came as part of an action against shipping magnate Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani, the son of Ali Shamkhani, who was a former advisor to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Both the elder Shamkhani and Khamenei were killed in the original U.S.-Israel joint attacks on Iran on Feb. 28.
In March, the Department of Justice filed a $2.4 million civil forfeiture claim against SeaLead and the Indian subsidiary, saying the money was intended to provide shipping services to the Shamkhani network.
First established in March 2017, SeaLead began offering feeder services in the Middle East before introducing long-haul services connecting China and the Middle East in 2020. The carrier expanded further upon bringing services to the trans-Pacific route in 2021.
