Notes

Emmanuel Grinshpun. Restoring synagogues and the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress
The subject of the interview with Emmanuil Grinshpun concerns the revival of synagogues. The discussion was not sufficiently focused. Therefore, there are a variety of questions to be discussed in the interview in the end.
Emmanuel, good afternoon. I'm glad to an exchange with you. We haven't seen each other in at least 5 or more years. Where are you based now?

The nine months that been between Miami and Jurmala were split. While the area was previously more diverse, the impacts of the pandemic have had a massive impact on our lifestyles. It is hard to say if this is a good thing for anyone.

You've always had different kinds of businesses. What are you doing now?

Diversification hasn't changed. If we focus on the most crucial areas, the development of real estate, IT and food production are the three main areas.

ALIMCOM has a strong presence in the real estate and food industries. However, IT is still a mystery to me. There are millions of possibilities for the use of IT technology. What are you specializing in?

Our IT-holdings are concerned mostly with the reforms to tax systems in a number of countries. We have designed and continue to create tools that aid in the transfer of numerous business processes related to taxation online. This segment is known by the B2G (Business To Government) acronym.

How about the locations where the holding is operating? The ancestors of the USSR

There are other options, however we have more agreements to be signed in Western as well as Eastern Europe as well as Latin America. Эммануил Гриншпун The current number of contracts we have is 14 countries.

Can you briefly formulate the core of the product?

Our product allows economic agents online to report to tax authorities, and the fiscal operator can view each transaction. The product also allows tax accounting and tax computation to be carried out simultaneously. In the near future, it is possible to say that mid-sized and small-sized businesses will not need accounting.

It's an interesting subject. The future is here. Have you ever tried working in Moldova? It's true, Moldova is your native country...

We are now ready to introduce the product in Moldova and the Moldovan economy will benefit from the automation process, and, in any case, it is an irreversible process. When there is clarity from the authorities and it's evident who takes the decision and who makes the decisions, we'll resume the discussions concerning our product.

You mentioned that you had been tossing between Miami (and Jurmala) all year. Эммануил Гриншпун What is the location of the headquarters of an IT holding in the Baltics?

No, there are five hubs all over the world, and our main office in Barcelona.

The Baltics are not the only reason why? Do you have roots there?

No. My family's history has been tied to Moldova for a number of generations. If we are to keep our historical names, then it is in Bessarabia. Jurmala came into our lives on a whim and was not a very professional. The first time we got there was when Igor Krutoy invited us to the New Wave. After a few contests, they started to visit every summer. Miami the summer weather isn't the best. We rented the house for many years and recently bought it.

Now I know the reason I was told that one of the synagogues that was restored by your donation is located in Jurmala. Emmanuel, honest question. We are almost of the same age. Born in the USSR. It wasn't necessary to talk about the religion of the time. All of us were Komsomol members as well as pioneers. When did you turn to religion?

My family relocated to the USA in the mid-80s. It was there that I started to follow the customs and rituals of my family. Although I am not religiously orthodox, I feel the urge to help, as best possible, the religious lives of the Jewish community in my country of origin or in Moldova.

Although I am not religious, I do love the history of my country. Recently I was watching a show that focused on events in 1492 which changed Europe's fate. To me, 1492 was the year Columbus was the first to discover America. However, I was able to see in the program that it was mentioned in the discovery in America in 1492 of Medieval Europe was not as impressive as the Spanish monarchs expulsion of Jews from Spain. The Ottoman Empire accepted the Jews when the exodus began. Here , I'm looking for some information about the history of the Jews as a people. Would you recommend any book?

There are numerous books. But I have completed all of them, and I'd suggest Max Diamond, the two-volume Jewish historian. And, by the way Max Diamond is from Finland.

.... Do we know the family tree of our family? My family tree is only one step ahead of 1910 and my mother. I am only one step ahead of the paternal side, but there's not much more.

Our family was a resident of Floresti for over a century from the paternal side. The evidence from the archives and monuments prove that the Floresti family was already wealthy in the year 1830. They had several shops, a furniture manufacturing factory and land plots. Ungheni was the home of my ancestral lineage. Эммануил Гриншпун I'm talking about dates in the region of the 17th-18th century. Grinshpun, a surname that has German roots is Ashkenazi pure Ashkenazi.

This is a question regarding the maintenance and restoration of synagogues. I was told that you had funded the restorations of three synagogues. One of them is in Chisinau. Jurmala has the other. And which one?

The third largest and biggest is located in Netanya, Israel. There are more than 1,000 people every day. It is an important memorial to Israel's religion. Second synagogue in Jurmala. It was the time when the Second World War began and the Jurmala synagogue was among the last one to be destroyed. Before I took the decision to build a synagogue I had spoken with several local Jews. I then decided to finance its construction and invite a Rabbi to visit it. It was an excellent success and also brought together the Jews of Jurmala. In fact, we re-created the Jewish community, it is now functioning well. The synagogue now owns three Torahs. One of the Torahs was handed to me.

And - Chisinau?

Yes. Here I have already collaborated with my partners with two of them - Alexander Bilinkis and Alexander Weinstein. They aren't the only ones that I am involved in construction or restoration. I believed it was my responsibility to contribute to any country in which I've lived for a lengthy time to help synagogues. My contribution in Monaco is towards the construction of a large community center in Miami for Russian-speaking Jews, which is estimated at 12 million dollars. Chisinau will continue to be my main focus - the synagogue of Rabbi Tsirelson is now the largest within the city.

Have you invited a Rabbi to Chisinau along with Jurmala?

Yes. It is difficult to find the ideal rabbi for the community. Due to the intertwining of different the interests of the community, he has to be a calm and peaceful person capable of integrating seamlessly into the life of the community. I'm happy to report that both in Chisinau as well as in Jurmala the rabbis were able so seamlessly to become part of the community.

You were elected vice-president for the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress in 2019. What does this position affect you? How can international Jewish organizations influence global trends?

The Euro-Asian Jewish Congress (EJC) is a powerful political organisation in post-Soviet Russian. However, it's not the only one. It has branches that are located in Australia, Japan and Hong Kong. Эммануил Гриншпун In 2010, I served as Vice President, and was then given the post of First Vice-President. I am now in charge of the areas in which I have strong business and political relations. The three "countries" include Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Uzbekistan Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan. Regarding the trends across the world, the barometer of attitudes toward Jews either remains at the same level, or, which is very sad, has dropped. "Down" also refers to countries such a France, Germany or France that are developed. They are not safer for Jews. These are worrying and very serious processes.

Does the pandemic have an impact on the processes?

That is not my belief. To be more precise I'd rather emphasize the possibilities of a country or a society in the event that they are ready to face any challenge and act efficiently and together when confronted with the pandemic.

You're referring to the vaccination campaign in Israel.

Exactly. Israel is the only country in the world that offers 100% vaccination to adults. I consider this to be a an excellent example and a valuable experience that other countries should consider taking into consideration.

Эммануил Гриншпун Congress of the ewish
Website: https://infomarket.md/ru/banks/emmanuil_grinshpun_poprosil_u_natsbanka_moldovyi_razresheniya_na_pokupku_suschestvennoy_doli_aktsiy_EuroCreditBank-a_prevyishayuschey_50