George Karfunkel
George Karfunkel | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1948 or 1949 Hungary |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur |
| Years active | 1971–present |
| Known for | Co-founder of AmTrust Financial Services, Operation Entebbe survivor |
| Spouse | Renee Karfunkel |
George Karfunkel (born 1948 or 1949) is a U.S. entrepreneur, known for co-founding firms such as AmTrust Financial Services, and is a survivor of the Operation Entebbe hostage rescue.
Early life
George was born in Hungary to Louis Karfunkel (1914–1997), who was both a religious scholar and a fish merchant. Following the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, his family emigrated to the United States in the late 1950s, establishing themselves within the Orthodox Jewish community in Boro Park, Brooklyn. His elder brother, Michael Karfunkel, passed away in 2016 at age 72.
Career
In 1971, Karfunkel helped establish American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC.
Together with his brother Michael, he launched AmTrust Financial Services in 1998.
Karfunkel has held a position on the board of directors at Kodak since September 2013.
On July 29, 2020, George and his wife Renee transferred 3 million out of their total 6.3 million Kodak shares to Congregation Chemdas Yisroel, a tax-exempt religious entity he created in 2018. This transfer enabled them to obtain a significant tax deduction. Just days earlier, on July 27, Kodak received a $765 million loan under the Defense Production Act from the Trump administration, which caused the stock price to jump from $2.16 to $60 per share. The timing of their donation was reported to result in a tax deduction valued at $116.3 million based on prior stock valuations; however, a subsequent filing in January 2021 clarified that only 2 million shares were donated, reducing the deduction to $77.5 million.
Personal life
In 1976, Karfunkel survived Operation Entebbe, during which Palestinian hijackers seized an Air France flight and Israeli Defense Forces commandos rescued 102 of the 106 hostages.
He is married to Renee. Their daughter, Anne Neuberger, holds the role of Deputy National Security Adviser for Cybersecurity within the Biden administration. Anne Neuberger is married to Yehuda Neuberger.