Bruce Rappaport

Bruce Rappaport
Bruce Rappaport
Born	15 February 1922 (age 104); Haifa, Mandatory Palestine
Died	8 January 2010 (aged 87)
Occupation(s)	Financier, banker
Known for	International finance, banking, shipping and oil trading enterprises; involvement in Swiss American Bank; diplomatic role as Antigua and Barbuda ambassador to Russia

Baruch "Bruce" Rappaport (February 15, 1922 – January 8, 2010) was a prominent international financier and banker. Originating from Haifa, Mandatory Palestine, where his Russian-Jewish immigrant parents had settled, he established an extensive global enterprise specializing in shipping and oil trading. This network operated through numerous shell corporations registered in locations including Panama, Liberia, and Antigua and Barbuda. Speculation linked Rappaport to transnational criminal organizations as well as intelligence agencies such as the CIA and Mossad. He was personally acquainted with former CIA director William J. Casey.

Early life

Rappaport was born to Jewish parents of Russian-Ukrainian descent who ran a cement business in Palestine. During World War II, he served in the British military, subsequently joining both the Haganah and the Israel Defense Forces. As a founding member of Israel’s military police, he also acted as a military judge after completing legal studies in 1953. Following exposure of a fraudulent scheme involving a local criminal figure, he left Israel, obtained multiple passports, and relocated to Switzerland. In Geneva, he established Société Générale de Surveillance along with the Swiss-Israel Trade Bank, reportedly with support from Gideon Persk—brother of Shimon Peres—and agents from Mossad. By 1959, he had launched International Maritime Services and International Maritime Supplies Company Limited, creating an international shipping and trade network in collaboration with the Greek Kulukundis family. Throughout his life, he held citizenships in Panama, Costa Rica, Israel, and Switzerland.

Antigua

Bruce Rappaport played an influential role in banking, industry, and political affairs within Antigua.

Swiss American Bank

In April 1983, Rappaport founded Swiss American Bank Ltd., which was later renamed Global Bank of Commerce, Ltd. This institution became the first bank licensed under Antigua’s International Business Corporations (IBC) Act of 1982.

During the 1990s, U.S. authorities accused Swiss American Bank and Swiss American National Bank—both operating out of Antigua—of involvement in money laundering related to narcotics trafficking. The U.S. government initiated legal proceedings against Swiss American Bank for withholding forfeited funds connected to John E. Fitzgerald, who had confessed to funneling $7 million through shell companies into the bank. Rather than returning these funds to U.S. officials, Swiss American Bank transferred $5 million to Antigua and Barbuda’s government and placed $880,000 into an account at the Bank of Bermuda. Former Prime Minister Lester Bird later asserted that pertinent documentation had been destroyed by a hurricane.

On March 1, 2006, the government of Antigua and Barbuda filed lawsuits against Lester Bird, Bruce Rappaport, and others for allegedly misappropriating more than $41 million associated with Swiss American Bank and related entities.

West Indies Oil Company (WIOC)

In 1980, National Petroleum Ltd., under Rappaport’s control, acquired 440,000 shares of the West Indies Oil Company (WIOC) from Antigua for $6 million. The transaction was arranged by former Prime Minister Lester Bird. On May 30, 2010, the government of Antigua and Barbuda repurchased all WIOC shares held by National Petroleum Ltd., financing the $68 million buyback through a loan from Venezuelan corporation PDVSA.

Arms Trafficking via Antigua

Bruce Rappaport, Maurice Sarfati, and Yair Klein were linked to the Guns for Antigua affair, which involved Israeli-origin firearms being routed through Antigua en route to the Medellin drug cartel in Colombia. This controversy emerged following the findings of the Louis Blom-Cooper Royal Commission, which connected multiple homicides in Colombia to these weapons. The arms were ostensibly delivered to the Antigua and Barbuda Defence Force, an entity outfitted at no expense by the United States. Rappaport financed and provided land in Antigua for a melon farm operation that served as a front to channel arms from Israel to Colombia.

Diplomatic Role in Russia

On December 3, 1997, Bruce Rappaport received his appointment as Antigua and Barbuda's ambassador to Russia.

Dispute Over Desalination Project

In 2006, the Government of Antigua and Barbuda initiated legal action against Bruce Rappaport along with several former government officials, accusing them of misappropriating $14 million during contract renegotiations for a desalination facility. The lawsuit implicated prominent members of the Lester Bird administration, including Bird himself, senior parliamentarian Asot Michael, Finance Minister John St. Luce, among others. The investigation incorporated evidence gathered from searches of personal documents and interviews with involved individuals.

By February 2009, an agreement was reached whereby Rappaport consented to reimburse $12 million of the contested funds.

Bank of New York

In 1982, Rappaport disclosed ownership of 7.5% in the Bank of New York. On August 19, 1999, the Bank of New York (BoNY) confirmed its cooperation with authorities investigating a $10 billion money laundering operation. Central to this inquiry were Bruce Rappaport and his affiliated institution, Bank of New York-InterMaritime—a Swiss-based bank managing substantial Russian financial activities. The allegations centered on laundering proceeds associated with Benex, linked to Semion Mogilevich. Furthermore, BoNY employee Natasha Kagalovsky, spouse of Konstantin Kagalovsky, was also subject to investigation.

That same year, shareholders initiated litigation against BoNY accusing both Rappaport and the bank of involvement in money laundering and connections to Russian organized crime, characterizing Rappaport as "an international financier of questionable background."

Bank of New York-InterMaritime

Rappaport's Bank of New York-InterMaritime along with Inter Maritime Bank - Bank of New York, Geneva (established in 1966) previously held ownership stakes in the Vyborg port and shipyard before these assets were acquired by Ilya Traber and Alexander Dobrovinsky in 1994. By 1992, BoNY possessed a 28% share in Bank of New York-InterMaritime.

In 1990, Rappaport engaged with Mikhail Gorbachev, securing endorsement to modernize thirty Soviet shipyards as their exclusive foreign investor. Jean Goutchkov (also known as Ivan Guchkov), a descendant of Alexander Guchkov, was employed at Intermaritime Bank prior to transitioning to Ferrier Lullin (which was acquired by the Julius Baer Group in 2005) and subsequently HSBC, where he primarily catered to affluent Russian clientele.

By 1994, BoNY—where Rappaport held significant shares—utilized Inter-Maritime Bank through their partnership to grant BoNY chairman J. Carter Bacot entry into Russian markets. It is important to note that Inter Maritime Bank - Bank of New York, Geneva maintained no branches in Antigua. In the United States, Boston-based attorney William Shaw McDermott represented Rappaport’s interests via Bank of New York - Inter Maritime Bank.

Bank Menatap and Inkombank

Both Bank Menatap and Inkombank were reportedly connected through business relationships with Bruce Rappaport.

BCCI

In 1987, Independent Counsel Robert McKay conducted an inquiry into Rappaport’s activities related to CIA director William Casey. This included the acquisition of an Antiguan melon farm intended for Israeli arms dealers, who were significant clients of BCCI in Miami, as well as the appointment of Alfred Hartmann to the boards of Intermaritime Bank in Geneva and New York.

Rappaport was said to have managed bank accounts that received $10 million designated for the Contras. Swiss authorities noted that these funds vanished but were subsequently returned by a Swiss businessman, believed to be Rappaport, after the Iran/Contra scandal became public.

Indonesia

During the early 1970s, General Ibnu Sutowo entered into several oil-tanker charter agreements with Rappaport to facilitate oil transportation for Pertamina. In April 1977, Sutowo was placed under house arrest due to his transactions with Rappaport, who faced allegations of price manipulation that contributed to Pertamina’s financial difficulties and broader economic issues in Indonesia.

Iraq–Jordan pipeline scandal

Throughout the 1980s, independent prosecutor James McKay examined former U.S. Attorney General Edwin Meese’s role in a Bechtel pipeline project linking Iraq and Jordan. Key figures in these negotiations included Meese, Shimon Peres, Rappaport, Robert C. McFarlane, among others.

Rappaport was offered immunity in return for honest testimony but opted not to attend his deposition, citing concerns about his memory’s reliability. He was accused of bribing Israeli officials to divert portions of the $1 billion project funds to the Israeli Labor Party. In 2006, Peres faced investigation over an unlawful $100,000 campaign donation from Rappaport.

Philanthropy

Bruce and Ruth Rappaport made notable contributions to the Technion, founding the Faculty of Medicine building in 1979—named the Rappaport Faculty of Medicine—and establishing the Technion's Rappaport Research Institute. The Technion recognized his significant philanthropic support following his passing.

In Geneva, the Rappaports donated millions to various Jewish and non-Jewish causes, including orphanages, daycare centers, research facilities, and hospitals throughout the United States, Israel, and other regions. Ruth Rappaport held the position of co-president at the Geneva branch of the Women's International Zionist Organization.

In 2006, Bruce and Ruth founded the Bruce and Ruth Rappaport Foundation to continue their charitable endeavors.

References