| A sovereign wealth fund (SWF) is an investment fund managed by a government agency on behalf of a nation or sovereign state. SWFs (or “sovereign funds”) generally have a mandate to invest globally in any asset class – stocks, bonds, commodities, currencies, real estate, etc.
SWFs have grown substantially in size, with total assets as of September 2013 amounting to $5.857 trillion, an increase of almost 80% from $3.265 trillion in September 2007. This enormous pool of capital gives SWFs a great deal of clout in financial markets. Since the majority of SWFs are located in the Middle East and Asia, whether these largely opaque entities are friends or foes of the nations where they invest has been the subject of hot debates from time to time..............................................Full Article: Source
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