Beny Shabtai: The Raymond Weil Founder and Viber Investor
Born Tel Aviv 1949, raised on a kibbutz, IDF veteran of the Six-Day and Yom Kippur Wars. Founded Raymond Weil USA in 1977 and ran it for 32 years. The Shabtai family held 55.2% of Viber and cleared ~$496M when Rakuten bought it in 2014. Now Miami Beach — Di Modolo, Botanika Life, FIDF board, Shabtai Society at Yale.
Also spelled Benny Shabtai (בני שבתאי) · Born June 1949, Tel Aviv · Israeli-American businessman and investor · Founder of Raymond Weil USA (1977–2009) · Lead investor in Viber (~$496M Rakuten exit) · Based in Miami Beach
Beny Shabtai is the Israeli-American businessman who built Raymond Weil into a household luxury-watch brand in the United States, then turned a 55.2% family stake in Viber into approximately $496 million when Rakuten bought the Israeli-developed messaging app in 2014. He is one of the clearest examples of the Israeli entrepreneur class that made its first fortune in a traditional consumer category — watches — and its second in Israeli tech.
At a Glance
| Full name | Benny Shabtai (also Beny Shabtai, Beni Shabtai, בני שבתאי) |
| Born | June 1949, Tel Aviv; raised on a kibbutz |
| Nationality | Israeli-American |
| Military | IDF — served in the Golan Heights during the Six-Day War (1967); recalled for reserves in the Yom Kippur War (1973) |
| Raymond Weil USA | Founded 1977; owner and president until sale in 2009 |
| Viber | Shabtai family held 55.2% via iMESH; sold to Rakuten for $900M total in Feb 2014; family share ~$496M |
| Current ventures | Di Modolo International (luxury jewelry), Botanika Life (wellness brand) |
| Residence | Miami Beach, Florida |
| Key affiliations | Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF) board; Shabtai Society at Yale University |
The Early Years: Kibbutz to the Golan
Shabtai was born in Tel Aviv in June 1949 and raised on a kibbutz. He served three years in the Israeli military, including in the Golan Heights during the 1967 Six-Day War. After his regular service he worked as a security officer at the Israeli embassy in Paris, where his father was stationed as an envoy. From Paris he traveled to southern Africa, working as a croupier at a casino in what was then Swaziland. He returned to Israel for reserve duty during the 1973 Yom Kippur War.
Raymond Weil USA: Thirty-Two Years in Luxury Watches
After completing his reserve service, Shabtai relocated to the United States and went to work at the now-defunct Eastman Watch Company, an importer of inexpensive watches from Hong Kong. At the International Watch and Jewellery Fair in Basel, Switzerland, he met Raymond Weil — the founder of the Swiss luxury watchmaker — and agreed to buy four hundred watches, which he sold to two US clients.
That transaction became Raymond Weil USA, founded in 1977. Shabtai ran it as owner and president for 32 years, placing the brand at Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom and launching what was one of the first luxury-goods billboard campaigns in the United States. He sold the business in 2009.
The trajectory — IDF veteran, European passage, consumer-goods importer, American luxury brand builder — is a recurrent pattern in the Israeli entrepreneurial emigration of the 1970s. Shabtai is the watch-industry exemplar.
Viber: The $900 Million Israeli Messaging Exit
After selling Raymond Weil USA, Shabtai invested in Viber — the Israeli-developed instant-messaging, voice, and video-calling app founded by Talmon Marco and Igor Magazinnik. The Shabtai family — Benny, his brother Gilad, and Gilad's son Ofer — accumulated a 55.2% stake in the company through their investment vehicle iMESH.
Viber had raised only $30 million in shareholder capital and no venture-capital funding when Japanese e-commerce conglomerate Rakuten acquired it in February 2014 for approximately $900 million. The Shabtai family's share: roughly $496 million. Other notable shareholders included Raphael Rebhan (12.5% via IRS West) and CEO Talmon Marco (11.4%).
The Viber exit was the third major acquisition of an Israeli startup in a twelve-month span and put the Shabtai family into the top tier of Israeli tech-exit beneficiaries — unusual for a family whose original fortune came from Swiss watches, not software.
The Post-Viber Chapter: Di Modolo, Botanika, Miami
With the Viber proceeds, Shabtai moved into two new ventures. He became president and CEO of Di Modolo International, a luxury jewelry company. He also co-founded Botanika Life, a wellness brand. The family has invested across additional sectors including defense technology and aviation.
His son David Shabtai has been active in the Miami hospitality scene, co-leading the opening of Italian restaurant Serafina in Miami in May 2025.
Shabtai's primary residence was formerly a 13-room townhouse at 870 Park Avenue in New York City, listed for sale in 2004 at $33 million. He has been based in Miami Beach since the mid-2010s, part of the broader Israeli-American migration from New York to South Florida that Olam has tracked across multiple profiles.
FIDF and the Shabtai Society at Yale
Shabtai served on the board of the Friends of the Israel Defense Forces (FIDF) for decades. He is credited with transforming FIDF's gatherings from modest community events into large-scale fundraising galas — an organizational shift that reshaped the model for diaspora defense philanthropy.
He is also the primary financial supporter and namesake of the Shabtai Society at Yale University, a programme devoted to garnering support for Israel and developing Jewish leadership among Ivy League students.
Why Shabtai Matters to the Olam Record
The Shabtai file sits at the intersection of two Olam themes. First: the Israeli entrepreneur who builds a consumer fortune in the United States and then converts it into Israeli tech equity — the watch importer who became a half-billion-dollar tech investor. Second: the Israeli philanthropy channel that runs through FIDF and the American university system, funded by the exit proceeds of exactly this kind of career.
The English-language coverage of Shabtai is thin relative to the Hebrew-language business record. This is the canonical English profile.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Beny Shabtai?
Benny Shabtai is an Israeli-American businessman and investor born in Tel Aviv in 1949. He founded Raymond Weil USA in 1977, ran it for 32 years, and later invested in the Israeli messaging app Viber, whose 2014 sale to Rakuten earned the Shabtai family approximately $496 million.
What was Shabtai's role in Viber?
The Shabtai family — Benny, his brother Gilad, and nephew Ofer — held a 55.2% stake in Viber through the investment vehicle iMESH. They were the controlling shareholders when Rakuten acquired the company for approximately $900 million in February 2014.
What is Raymond Weil USA?
The exclusive US distribution company for the Swiss luxury watchmaker Raymond Weil, founded by Shabtai in 1977 after meeting the brand's founder at the Basel watch fair. He sold the business in 2009.
Where does Beny Shabtai live?
Miami Beach, Florida. He previously lived at 870 Park Avenue on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.
What is the Shabtai Society at Yale?
A programme at Yale University devoted to Israel advocacy and Jewish leadership development, primarily funded by Shabtai.
What does Shabtai do now?
He leads Di Modolo International (luxury jewelry) and co-founded Botanika Life (wellness brand). He continues his involvement with FIDF and other Israeli-diaspora institutions.
Did Beny Shabtai serve in the IDF?
Yes. He served three years in the Israeli military, including in the Golan Heights during the 1967 Six-Day War, and was recalled for reserves during the 1973 Yom Kippur War.
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