INDEX / DIRECTORY / BYD / ECONOMIC

BYD ECONOMIC

ECONOMIC AUDIT UPDATED 2026-07-10
Economic Score 4.38 /10 D BYD - BDS-1000 311
Economic 4.38

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Economic Audit: BYD

Economic Audit: BYD

Domain: Israeli-Nexus Economic Exposure - Direct and Indirect Commercial, Ownership, and Operational Ties

Supply Chain & Sourcing Relationships

BYD’s entire commercial presence in the Israeli passenger-vehicle market is conducted through Shlomo Motors Ltd, part of the Shlomo Group (headed by Asi Shmeltzer, owned by Atalia Shmeltzer), which was formally appointed as BYD’s national distributor and importer for new-energy passenger vehicles in August 2022, building on a prior decade-plus relationship through BYD’s electric-bus business 12345. On the commercial-vehicle side, BYD has supplied electric buses to Israeli public-transport operators, including a 100-bus order to Egged in November 2021 described as Israel’s largest-ever electric bus tender, an earlier 17-bus order for Haifa, and a fleet of 24 BYD buses reported operating in Haifa and Jerusalem since 2017 678. A separate, [pre-2020] order places BYD in a 2012 contract with Dan Bus Company for 700 electric buses valued at roughly $236.65 million, though the current operational status of that fleet could not be confirmed in the sources reviewed 9. Egged, a downstream BYD bus customer, is documented by Who Profits as providing approximately 55% of settlement public transport across the West Bank via routes serving Gush Etzion, Giv’at Ze’ev, Binyamin, Mount Hebron, Kiryat Arba, the Jordan Valley, Shiloh, Otniel, and Ma’ale Adumim 1011; the same operator lost a €190 million Netherlands transit contract following a BDS-linked campaign, illustrating reputational/commercial risk attached to BYD’s bus-customer base 12. No source identified in this review specifically confirms whether BYD-manufactured buses (as opposed to other makes in Egged’s mixed fleet) operate on settlement-designated routes versus routes wholly within Israel’s 1948 boundaries or East Jerusalem municipal lines. A distinct BYD-branded distributor operating under the domain byd.ps serves the Palestinian Authority-administered market from what is reported to be a Ramallah base, but its legal name, ownership, and address could not be independently verified from the primary source consulted 13. Two civil-society company-tracking documents - the Don’t Buy Into Occupation 2024 Annex 1 company list and the Don’t Buy Into Occupation V (2025) report - were identified as potentially relevant but could not be text-searched for a BYD, Shlomo Motors, Egged, or Dan Bus Company mention due to document-extraction limitations in this review 1415.

Product Origin, Labeling & Regulatory Compliance

No public evidence identified of BYD holding a formal corporate policy on sourcing or labeling from occupied territories, nor of settlement-origin product-mislabeling issues analogous to those found in agricultural sectors, reflecting that BYD’s products are manufactured vehicles rather than goods subject to “Produce of Israel”-style origin labeling. Searches of the OHCHR settlement-business database (158 listed enterprises, most recently updated September 2025) and of UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese’s “From economy of occupation to economy of genocide” report (A/HRC/59/23, 30 June 2025) found no BYD reference in either instrument 161718. On data-handling compliance, a May 2026 class-action lawsuit seeking approximately NIS 300 million was filed in Israel against BYD and Shlomo Motors, alleging systematic collection of sensitive personal, biometric, location, and in-cabin data from Israeli drivers and passengers and its undisclosed transfer to third parties in China without consent required under Israel’s Privacy Protection Law; the suit was filed by attorneys Elad Danoch, David Michayev, and Gai Davidovitz (Danoch & Co.) together with Chaim Rabia and Tal Ron (Pearl Cohen), with Shlomo Motors responding that it “operate[s] according to law” and rejecting the claims 1920. Reporting on the suit states that more than 50,000 BYD vehicles have been sold in Israel to date 20. Related Hebrew- and English-language reporting describes over-the-air range reduction, in-vehicle data collection, and a broader Israeli defense-establishment decision - dated August 2025 in Hebrew-language press - to ban Chinese-manufactured vehicles from all IDF bases over espionage and data-leak fears, with independent English-language reporting corroborating that Chinese electric vehicles in Israel have been found transmitting data to China and that Chinese smart devices more broadly are characterized as conducting surveillance inside Israel 212223242025. On fiscal/regulatory treatment, Israel’s Tax Authority has published purchase-tax schedules affecting electric vehicles (52% in 2026), and the Israeli government has separately announced additional tax benefits for electric and hybrid vehicles, regulatory frameworks under which BYD-imported vehicles are sold 2627.

Investment, Capital & Financial Exposure

No public evidence identified of direct BYD capital investment - factories, data centers, logistics hubs, or real estate - within Israel or the occupied territories; all Israeli market activity is distributor-based through Shlomo Motors rather than BYD-owned operational assets. No public evidence identified of BYD-operated R&D facilities, technology partnerships, innovation labs, or accelerator programs in Israel. No public evidence identified of BYD underwriting Israeli sovereign debt, Israel Bonds, or providing direct lending/insurance to Israeli defense entities, consistent with BYD’s status as a manufacturer rather than a financial institution. On historical shareholder exposure, Berkshire Hathaway held a BYD stake from September 2008 (approximately 225 million shares, ~10%, initial $230 million investment) through a peak reported value of $415 million at year-end 2024, before fully exiting the position by the end of March 2025 - a relationship that is discontinued as of the current audit date 282930. Berkshire Hathaway separately, and on an ongoing basis unrelated to its former BYD stake, owns Iscar Metalworking Companies of Tefen, Israel, having acquired 80% in 2006 (valuing IMC at $5 billion) and the remaining 20% from the Wertheimer family in 2013 for approximately $2.05 billion 31323334. This constitutes a temporally disconnected coincidence of ownership (a former BYD investor separately owning an unrelated Israeli industrial company) rather than a BYD corporate holding. Separately, a Jared Kushner-linked, Saudi-backed private equity fund has invested approximately $150 million in the Shlomo Group - the parent of BYD’s Israeli distributor Shlomo Motors - marking a capital-exposure event within BYD’s Israeli distribution channel, though not an investment in BYD itself 3536.

Operational Presence & Market Activity

BYD’s confirmed physical footprint in Israel consists of Shlomo Motors-operated showrooms in Petach Tikva, Haifa, and (west) Jerusalem, and Be’er Sheva, with additional locations planned in Bnei Brak and Nazareth 23. No public evidence identified of BYD-direct employee headcount in Israel; the workforce serving BYD customers is employed by Shlomo Motors, which operates 38 branches nationally per BYD’s own release 1. BYD’s own press materials framed Israel in growth terms, with Michael Shu, GM of BYD Europe and International Cooperation Division, stating in December 2022 that expansion was “just the start for BYD in Israel” as the brand led EV deliveries that November 37; Globes reported in 2023 that Israel was then BYD’s largest export market, coinciding with Chairman Wang Chuanfu’s visit to Israel as a guest of Shlomo Motors in September 2023 38. BYD’s official Tang warranty manual is issued as a joint “Europe and Israel” document, indicating Israel is administratively bundled with BYD’s European regulatory/service region 39. Market activity has continued and expanded through the constructive-notice window following mid-to-late 2024: BYD ranked as Israel’s #1 EV brand and #5 overall vehicle brand in 2024, with the Atto 3 the best-selling car in Israel for a second consecutive year (approximately 25,000 units), while Chinese brands overall reached an 18.5% Israeli market share in 2024 4041; a new sponsorship agreement between Maccabi Tel Aviv FC and BYD’s Israeli importer was signed in December 2024 42; a new BYD plug-in hybrid model launched in Israel in November 2025 43; BYD continued to lead Israeli EV sales through January–October 2025 44; and Israel entered BYD’s global top-10 passenger-vehicle export destinations for the first time in 2025, ranking 7th (January–February 2026, 5,236 units) and 10th (January–April 2026, 7,282 units) among BYD’s worldwide export markets 4546. Trade press coverage in 2026 characterizes the collision between China’s EV export growth (including BYD) and Israel’s emerging security concerns over Chinese-connected vehicles 47.

Corporate Structure & Foundational Ties

BYD was founded in Shenzhen, China in 1995 and is listed on the Hong Kong and Shenzhen stock exchanges; no evidence of Israeli founding, incorporation, dual headquarters, or tax residency was identified. No public evidence identified of Israeli Preferred Technology Enterprise (PTE) status for BYD, of Israeli state ownership stakes in BYD, of Israeli government board appointees, or of a critical-national-infrastructure designation for BYD within Israel. No public evidence identified of governance mechanisms - golden shares, founder shares, or charter restrictions - tying BYD’s mission to Israeli state policy objectives. Chairman Wang Chuanfu personally visited Israel in September 2023 as a guest of Shlomo Motors, in a visit Globes described as conducted quietly, during a period Israel was characterized as BYD’s then-largest export market 38. In the reverse direction, Israel’s Ministry of Defense had procured Chinese-made vehicles - including MG ZS EV and Chery Tiggo 8 models (600+ units) for officer transport - and had planned to supply new BYD Atto 3 units to IDF lieutenant colonels, before halting BYD delivery following a cybersecurity inspection 2124. This culminated in a broader Israeli defense-establishment decision, dated August 2025 in Hebrew-language reporting, banning Chinese-manufactured vehicles from all IDF bases over espionage and data-leak fears 2025, which escalated into a formal withdrawal directed by Chief of the General Staff Eyal Zamir of approximately 700 Chinese-made vehicles (primarily Chery Tiggo 8 Pro, alongside the suspended BYD Atto 3 deliveries) from Israeli military use, a process reported as completing around Q1 2026, with replacement sourcing shifted to Japanese, Korean, and European brands 22. Separately, in June 2026 the US Department of Defense added BYD, alongside Alibaba, Baidu, and other firms, to its “1260H list” of companies assessed as linked to China’s military-civil fusion apparatus, a designation BYD publicly disputed, stating “there is no justification” for its inclusion 484950. This is a US regulatory action rather than an Israel-specific finding, but it is contextually relevant as it echoes the same cybersecurity/espionage rationale cited by Israeli defense authorities in the same period.

Profit Repatriation & Economic Contribution

No public evidence identified of a specific, disclosed BYD revenue figure attributed to the Israeli market in BYD’s own financial disclosures; BYD reports under Hong Kong/Shenzhen Stock Exchange rules and no SEC Form 10-K or 20-F was located, consistent with BYD not being a US-listed, SEC-reporting entity. Available figures are limited to trade-press unit-sales data: 14,244 units sold in 2023 40, continued #1 EV brand / #5 overall brand status with approximately 25,000 Atto 3 units in 2024 41, and 12,160 units sold January–October 2025 44. Because BYD’s Israel operations run through an independent Israeli distributor (Shlomo Motors) that purchases vehicles from BYD for resale, revenue collected from Israeli consumers flows to Shlomo Motors as an Israeli entity for the retail/service margin, while wholesale vehicle payments flow outward from Israel to BYD in China as manufacturer - a profit structure consistent with a standard export/distributor arrangement rather than a locally domiciled subsidiary structure; no public disclosure of exact repatriation figures was identified in this review. No public evidence identified of an official Israeli government or industry-body designation of BYD as a “sector anchor” or equivalent, though trade press consistently frames BYD as Israel’s dominant EV brand and a top-5 overall automotive brand by volume 404144.

End Notes

Footnotes

  1. https://www.byd.com/eu/news-list/BYD-Appoints-Shlomo-Motors-as-Distributor-for-New-Energy-Passenger-Vehicles-in-Israel ↩ ↩2

  2. https://cnevpost.com/2022/08/02/byds-passenger-car-business-expands-to-israel/ ↩ ↩2

  3. https://www.electrive.com/2022/08/04/byd-is-expanding-to-israel/ ↩ ↩2

  4. https://www.just-auto.com/news/byd-names-israel-passenger-ev-distributor/ ↩

  5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shlomo_Group ↩

  6. https://www.sustainable-bus.com/news/israel-largest-electric-bus-order-byd/ ↩

  7. https://en.byd.com/news/byd-secures-landmark-electric-bus-order-for-israel/ ↩

  8. https://www.electrive.com/2021/11/29/100-byd-electric-buses-bound-for-israel/ ↩

  9. https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/business/2012-08/27/content_16061876.htm ↩

  10. https://www.whoprofits.org/companies/company/4065 ↩

  11. https://maki.org.il/en/?p=3479 ↩

  12. https://bdsmovement.net/node/19164 ↩

  13. https://byd.ps/en-ps/contact-us ↩

  14. https://dontbuyintooccupation.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/2024_DBIO-IV_Company-list.pdf ↩

  15. https://dontbuyintooccupation.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/2025-DBIO-V-report.pdf ↩

  16. https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2025/09/un-human-rights-office-updates-database-businesses-involved-israeli ↩

  17. https://www.ohchr.org/en/business/bhr-database ↩

  18. https://www.ohchr.org/en/documents/country-reports/ahrc5923-economy-occupation-economy-genocide-report-special-rapporteur ↩

  19. https://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=1001541760 ↩

  20. https://www.i24news.tv/he/news/news/local/artc-a96a59fd ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  21. https://militarnyi.com/en/news/chinese-electric-cars-in-israel-found-to-be-transmitting-data-to-china/ ↩ ↩2

  22. https://moderndiplomacy.eu/2026/01/22/israel-bans-chinese-vehicles-from-military-bases-citing-espionage-fears/ ↩ ↩2

  23. https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/bjx113iufmg ↩

  24. https://www.ynetnews.com/business/article/s1ea3albeg ↩ ↩2

  25. https://www.calcalist.co.il/local_news/car/article/rj9qrh00kzg ↩ ↩2

  26. https://www.gov.il/en/pages/sa121125-1 ↩

  27. https://www.timesofisrael.com/additional-tax-benefits-to-be-offered-for-electric-hybrid-vehicles/ ↩

  28. https://www.business-standard.com/world-news/warren-buffett-berkshire-hathaway-exits-byd-17-year-investment-profits-125092200783_1.html ↩

  29. https://www.forbes.com/sites/ywang/2025/09/22/warren-buffetts-berkshire-hathaway-sells-entire-stake-in-chinese-ev-giant-byd/ ↩

  30. https://fortune.com/2025/09/22/warren-buffett-sold-stake-byd-tesla/ ↩

  31. https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/business/2013-05-02/ty-article/.premium/warren-buffett-completes-iscar-takeover/0000017f-e016-d3ff-a7ff-f1b69a7d0000 ↩

  32. https://www.berkshirehathaway.com/news/jul0506.html ↩

  33. https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/berkshire-hathaway-buying-rest-of-israels-imc-for-2-05-billion ↩

  34. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ISCAR_Metalworking ↩

  35. https://www.timesofisrael.com/jared-kushners-saudi-backed-private-equity-fund-clinches-first-investment-in-israel/ ↩

  36. https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/ry2vu0s0n ↩

  37. https://www.byd.com/eu/news-list/BYD-Leads-Electric-Vehicle-Deliveries-in-Israel-in-November ↩

  38. https://en.globes.co.il/en/article-chinas-byd-chairman-wang-chuanfu-visits-israel-1001457388 ↩ ↩2

  39. https://www.byd.com/material/byd-site/eu/support/service/warranty/en/BYD%20TANG%20Limited%20Warranty%20Manual-Europe%20and%20Israel-EN.pdf ↩

  40. https://carnewschina.com/2024/01/04/chinese-car-companies-byd-and-geely-lead-israeli-electric-vehicle-sales-in-2023/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  41. https://bestsellingcarsblog.com/2025/01/israel-full-year-2024-byd-atto-3-repeats-at-1-chinese-at-18-5-share/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  42. https://www.maccabi-tlv.co.il/en/2024/12/maccabi-and-the-importer-of-byd-vehicles-to-israel-sign-sponsorship-deal/ ↩

  43. https://english.news.cn/20251127/c5b98e8206ef4446a10421b4ce7e46ba/c.html ↩

  44. https://en.imsilkroad.com/p/342910.html ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  45. https://autonews.gasgoo.com/articles/news/top-10-countries-for-byd-passenger-car-exports-in-jan-feb-2026-brazil-leads-with-52000-units-three-middle-eastern-countries-enter-top-10-gasgoo-automotive-research-institute-2041528408855461889 ↩

  46. https://autonews.gasgoo.com/articles/market-industry/top-10-destinations-by-byds-passenger-vehicle-shipments-janapr-2026-brazil-leads-with-148310-units-gasgoo-automotive-research-institute-2066360972036644865 ↩

  47. https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/ujxpwqu5y ↩

  48. https://www.cnbc.com/2026/06/09/alibaba-baidu-byd-named-on-pentagons-china-military-list-.html ↩

  49. https://www.wilmerhale.com/en/insights/client-alerts/20260611-pentagon-adds-65-new-entities-to-the-1260h-list-of-chinese-military-companies ↩

  50. https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3356419/us-adds-alibaba-byd-and-other-chinese-tech-champions-military-company-list ↩