Sovereign fund Temasek Holdings is in talks with Actis to acquire the latter’s stake in Bangalore-based retail chain Nilgiris Dairy Farm. Sources in the know, however, say a dispute between Actis and the promoters of Nilgiris is likely to disrupt the talks.
Actis, which had acquired a stake of about 51 per cent in Nilgiris for Rs 300 crore ($65 million) six years earlier, had, in the recent past, increased the stake to 67 per cent. Though Actis has been trying to exit the retail chain through a strategic sale, the promoters, the Mudaliar family, is not keen on an exit, it is learnt…………………………………….Full Article: Source

Sebi relaxed the Know Your Clients (KYC) norms for various overseas entities including foreign institutional investors, and has done away with in- person verification requirements for non-individual clients. The market regulator has given the clarifications on KYC norms for FIIs, sub-accounts and Qualified Foreign Investors (QFIs).
In a circular, Sebi said that foreign entities such as Sovereign Wealth Fund and overseas government agencies would not be required to provide residential and photograph, among others, to meet KYC norms…………………………………….Full Article: Source

Nigeria’s newly launched sovereign wealth fund (SWF), will invest in local infrastructure according to Uche Orji, a former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) and UBS AG (UBSN) banker named to lead the fund. Orji was named head of the Nigerian Sovereign Wealth Investment Authority, on August 28 and will have a first term of five years, Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said. The fund be based in Abuja.
“It’s a crucial cornerstone of the mandate of the fund,” Orji, said last week in a Bloomberg telephone interview from New York “This is not saving money for savings sake; this is about impacting the lives of people in a way that will be very fundamental for the future of Nigeria.”……………………………………Full Article: Source

The newly appointed Managing Director of the Nigerian Sovereign Wealth Fund Authority (NSWFA), Mr. Uche Orji, has said he would spend the fund on local infrastructure.
Orji a former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) and UBS AG (UBSN) banker said it was a crucial cornerstone of the mandate of the fund. Speaking with Bloomberg, he stressed:“This is not saving money for savings sake, this is about impacting the lives of people in a way that will be very fundamental for the future of Nigeria.”……………………………………Full Article: Source

On Friday, shareholders in Xstrata, one of the world’s biggest miners of copper and coal, are to vote on an offer from Glencore, which dominates the global trading of such materials. But Qatar Holding, a unit of the Persian Gulf nation’s sovereign wealth fund, is poised to squash the acquisition.
Over the last year, Qatar, an increasingly powerful investor with holdings in large multinational companies, has spent nearly $5 billion amassing a 12 percent share of Xstrata. That stake gives Qatar a big voice in the process, and it plans to vote against the deal…………………………………….Full Article: Source

Time was, every time a sovereign wealth fund (SWF) acquired an airport, it was alleged to be one small but devious step away from the national treasure. The sometimes protectionist, sometimes xenophobic outcries were silenced for a while: shortage of capital tends to have that effect.
But simultaneous controversies across a number of its investments have increased speculation that the Qatari Investment Authority (QIA) and some of its peers may be adopting an edgier, more aggressive, investment approach…………………………………….Full Article: Source

How will sovereign wealth funds fair if Republican nominee Mitt Romney wins the 2012 U.S. presidential election? How will they fair under a second term of President Barack Obama?
The American President, lobbyists, and policymakers can affect sovereign wealth fund investment performance, asset growth, asset allocation, and public perception. In fact, the President of the United States can give the thumbs up or down on transactions that come under the scope of CFIUS…………………………………….Full Article: Source