Europe’s hopes of ringfencing the embattled single currency through a €1 trillion-plus leveraged bailout fund are sinking due to spiralling bond yields, investor flight from eurozone debt, and failure to entice cash-rich governments in the far east to commit to the plan.
Klaus Regling, the head of the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), is expected to tell eurozone finance ministers meeting in Brussels on Tuesday evening that the scheme to quintuple the firepower of the fund by underwriting initial losses on eurozone bond-buying by China and sovereign wealth funds in the far and Middle East has failed to attract enough interest………………………………………..Full Article: Source

At last a radical use of capitalism has been announced to address the UK’s pension black hole and stimulate growth. Discussions have begun between the UK pensions sector and the Treasury to create a £30bn sovereign wealth fund (SWF) to become a state-led investment vehicle, owned by British pensioners, to fund large scale infrastructure projects.
The idea is not new however. This is a classic case of the UK’s Coalition and Whitehall finally leaping from a very cold bath with its ‘Eureka’ moment. SWFs and public pension reserve funds (PPRF) have been effectively used for nearly 10 years in most of Europe, North America and Southeast Asia. Governments (such as those in Norway, the UAE, Russia, Canada and China) use these vehicles to manage directly or indirectly large asset pools to achieve long-term national objectives………………………………………..Full Article: Source

China is preparing to buy up plum assets in Europe, the commerce minister said on Monday, as the escalating debt crisis leaves countries in the region increasingly vulnerable to the deep pockets of Chinese firms.
The fastest-growing major economy in the world is keen to invest in infrastructure in Western Europe, particularly in Britain, Lou Jiwei, the head of $400 billion China Investment Corp (CIC) said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

China’s sovereign wealth fund wants to invest in improving infrastructure in Europe and the United States to spur global growth, the fund’s chairman wrote in the Financial Times. “Now, infrastructure in Europe and the US badly needs more investment,” China Investment Corporation’s Lou Jiwei wrote.
“Traditionally, Chinese involvement in overseas infrastructure projects has been as a contractor only. Now, Chinese investors also see a need to invest in, develop and operate projects.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source

Britain said on Monday it would welcome investment by China’s $400 billion sovereign wealth fund in infrastructure projects, saying it would represent a “very significant boost” to the ailing economy.
Ministers are expected to detail a GBP 30 billion ($46.7 billion, 34.9 billion euros) programme of investment in roads, railways and high-speed broadband on Tuesday as part of a package of measures to try to boost stalled growth………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Managing Director of Institutional Fundraising at the Citadel Capital Stephen Murphy said institutions like the China Investment Corporation (CIC) , a sovereign wealth fund and China Africa Development Fund, an eventual 5 billion dollar fund to encourage and support Chinese enterprises to invest in Africa should take opportunities to invest in Africa’s private equity funds.
Citadel Capital is expected to start talks with CIC next month with possibility of the fund investing in into the African private equity………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Greentown China Holdings Ltd, a Hangzhou-based property developer, is talking with a subsidiary of China Investment Corp (CIC), Blackstone Group and Beijing Greentown Sunshine Investment Co to set up a joint venture (JV) for domestic property development.
“With a 60 percent stake, China Jianyin Investment Securities Co is to launch the JV, and the Blackstone Group will take a 10 percent stake in the JV via its private-equity team,” said a source with knowledge of the deal on Monday………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund is looking to rope in a senior fund manager to manage its offshore funds, which was managed by Ajay Aragal before he quit to join Barings in Hong Kong. According to mutual fund industry sources, a fund manager, who is with a sovereign wealth fund (SWF) of a Gulf country, is in the race for the job.
Birla Sun Life officials did not respond to an email on the matter………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Khazanah Nasional Bhd is actively pursuing investments in healthcare and insurance sectors, going by recent reports. Reuters reported yesterday that the sovereign wealth fund had committed to purchase US$150mil (RM479.8mil) worth of H-shares in New China Life Insurance Co Ltd.
Also this week, a Bloomberg report stated that Khazanah’s unit may buy a stake in Turkey’s largest hospital chain, Acibadem Saglik Hizmetleri & Ticaret AS for US$1bil (RM3.2bil)………………………………………..Full Article: Source

States won a major battle yesterday, with the Federal Government releasing $2billion from the excess crude account for sharing. Minister of State for Finance Alhaji Yerima Lawan Ngama announced this after the meeting of the Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) in Abuja.
The FAAC meeting agreed to share N615.757billion for October, among the three tiers of government………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Omani sovereign wealth fund the State General Reserve Fund has completed its acquisition of the Four Seasons Hotel Gresham Palace in Budapest, Hungary, from Irish developer Avestus, formerly known as Quinlan Private.
The sale price is undisclosed, but it is rumoured that the hotel changed hands for no more than €40 million……………………………………….Full Article: Source

The inspector general for the U.S. Postal Service wants changes to the bypass mail program that helps underpin life in rural Alaska, and even suggests the state dip into its permanent fund to pay for a program that lost $73 million in the last fiscal year, according to the Associated Press.
The inspector general report notes that the financially strapped post office has little leeway to control the program’s costs, which subsidizes Alaska’s aviation industry, according to the article. The title of the report is “Alaska Bypass: Beyond its Original Purpose.”……………………………………….Full Article: Source