6th July, 2021
Israel’s plan to launch a sovereign wealth fund – the Israel Citizens’ Fund – this year has been scuppered due to lower-than-expected revenue from tax on excess profits on gas and other natural resources. The Middle Eastern state’s experience underscores the challenges faced by governments seeking to leverage excesses of commodity revenues or foreign exchange reserves to establish an SWF.
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19th May, 2021
Better known for buying chunky real assets in infrastructure and real estate, India’s National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) is marking its first foray into start-ups with plans to acquire a US$150-200 million stake in children’s clothing e-commerce unicorn FirstCry.
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16th April, 2021
Bangladesh is following a growing trend of quasi-SWF infra funds with the launch this week of the Bangladesh Infrastructure Development Fund (BIDF), using a foreign exchange windfall. Yet, the BIDF carries the risk of potentially risky FX reserve depletion and the build-up of a bad loan portfolio that could ultimately undermine its purpose.
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31st March, 2021
India’s quasi-SWF, the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund, has sprung a surprise with a new venture into healthcare.
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30th March, 2021
After his first year at the helm, Ontario Teachers Pension Plan CEO Jo Taylor must be heaving a sigh of relief. Rising above the impact of the pandemic, the C$221.2 billion (US$173 billion) public pension fund posted an 8.6% annual return in 2020 with the performance of its equity investments more than offsetting disappointing results in real estate.
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11th March, 2021
Outstanding payments to solar power generation companies (gencos) by cash-strapped distribution companies (discoms) in India is set to erode the foreign investor confidence in the sector – and will potentially hit the earnings of foreign state-owned investors.
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8th March, 2021
Canadian public pension fund Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) has partnered with Dubai’s DP World to back a container port and logistics park in East Java.
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11th February, 2021
India’s National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) is close to achieving its US$1 billion target for its Fund of Funds following a US$100 million investment by the BRICS-backed multilateral development bank, New Development Bank (NDB).
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2nd February, 2021
Investment in Indian highways could accelerate in 2021 following a year of stalling activity among state-owned investors, in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
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1st February, 2021
In December 2020, NIIFL announced that it had officially closed the Master Fund, which is focused on Indian core infrastructure, with USD 2.34 billion in commitments, including two SWFs (ADIA, Temasek), four PPFs (AustralianSuper, CPP, OTPP and PSP), US DFC and a number of domestic investors such as ICICI Bank, HDFC Group, Axis Bank and Kotak Mahindra Life Insurance. The institution is now fundraising for a Strategic Opportunities Fund (direct private equity) and a Fund of Funds, targeting a total to US$ 6 billion AuM. NIIFL is now regarded as a success story that focuses on two critical assets for the country – private equity and infrastructure – with governments around the world keen to emulate the model. We had the pleasure to catch up with its Head of Investor Relations & Partnerships, Ms. Saloni Jhaveri.
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22nd January, 2021
Indonesia’s plans to encourage FDI in startups through liberalization measures coupled with its new SWF acting as a lightning rod for capital will spur sovereign investor interest in a large swathe of an economy that offers stable growth and huge potential.
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23rd December, 2020
Congratulations to National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) for the successful closing of its Master Fund, which exceeded the initial fundraising target and includes 2 SWFs and 4 PPFs
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