Oman’s biggest sovereign wealth fund has filed an arbitration claim against Bulgaria over the collapse of Corporate Commercial Bank (Corpbank), the online database of Washington-based International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes showed.
Oman’s State General Reserve Fund (SGRF) fund owned a 30 percent stake in Corpbank, which was Bulgaria’s fourth-largest lender before collapsing last year following a bank run. The bank collapse triggered the Balkan country’s biggest financial crisis since the 1990s, prompting Sofia to pay over 3.6 billion levs ($2.03 billion) to guaranteed depositors and boosting the country’s fiscal deficit for 2014 to 5.8 percent of economic output……………………………………….Full Article: Source

The State General Reserve Fund of Oman has taken legal action against Bulgaria, seeking to recover the book value of its investment in collapsed Corporate Commercial Bank, Sofia-based 24 Chasa daily reported on Monday. The Omani sovereign wealth fund was also reportedly seeking interest payments for the period from the putting of the bank under the Bulgarian central bank’s control to the date when it was declared insolvent, 24 Chasa said.
The Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) put the country’s fourth-largest lender under direct administration on June 20, 2014 following a run on deposits, suspending shareholders’ rights. In April, Corporate Commercial Bank, known by its Bulgarian acronym KTB, was declared insolvent as of November 6, 2014 – the date when the BNB suspended its banking licence………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Oman’s biggest sovereign wealth fund has agreed with Japanese institutions to set up a joint $400 million fund that will invest in food and agribusiness industries, Omani officials said on Sunday. The fund will facilitate direct investment in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states by Japanese food and agribusiness firms, ranging from grains and feed to vegetables, milk and dairy products, logistics and research firms, they said, aiming to spend at least 35 percent of the money in Oman.
The Gulf Japan Food Fund will be owned 37.5 percent by Oman’s State General Reserve Fund. State-run Oman National Investments Development Co and Gulf Investment Corp, owned by the six GCC states, will hold a combined 12.5 percent………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Oman India Joint Investment Fund, a JV between SBI and Oman’s sovereign fund, today sold off its entire stake of 4.28 per cent in Solar Industries India Ltd for a little over Rs 240 crore. According to bulk deals data available with BSE, the special purpose vehicle (SPV) for promoting joint investment in projects in India sold 7,74,195 shares, amounting to 4.28 per cent stake of the company.
The investment fund was formed in 2011 by State Bank of India (SBI) and the State General Reserve Fund of Oman (SGRF)………………………………………..Full Article: Source

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Secretary of the Treasury Jacob Lew along with Qatari Foreign Minister Khaled Al-Attiya, Minister of Finance Ali Al-Emadi, and CEO of the Qatar Investment Authority Sheikh Abdullah Al-Thani inaugurated our first U.S.-Qatar Economic and Investment Dialogue today, marking a milestone in the bilateral relationship between our countries.
The dialogue will serve as an annual forum for convening key decision makers to identify concrete steps to bolster our financial, investment, and economic relations. Trade between the United States and Qatar has reached record levels, and the dialogue promises to help build upon that momentum. We are committed to the shared priorities of generating economic growth, creating jobs, and facilitating strong business relationships between Qatari and U.S. companies in a way that enhances prosperity for each country………………………………………..Full Article: Source

A potential rating cut is still deterring investors, according to Jonathan Lemco, senior sovereign analyst and principal at Vanguard, which runs the world’s biggest bond fund. Fitch Ratings earlier this year pointed at the possibility as Malaysia’s trade balance worsened and amid concerns related to 1Malaysia Development Bhd., a sovereign wealth fund at the center of a political scandal that has prompted street demonstrations calling for Najib’s resignation.
The downgrade threat has since lessened after Fitch changed the outlook for the nation’s credit score to ‘stable’ from ‘negative’ on June 30. Among the reasons were improved fiscal finances and the fact that even the current-account surplus is above the median of nations with a similar A- rating to Malaysia’s, it said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Azerbaijan’s state oil fund SOFAZ expects its budget for 2015 to be deficit-ridden due to the long decline in world oil prices. SOFAZ told Trend last week that while drawing up the fund’s budget for 2015, the basic parameters of the state budget were taken as a basis and the expected oil price was set at $90 per barrel.
“Taking into account an oil price of $50 per barrel, SOFAZ’s total income, including the proceeds from the sale of oil and gas are predicted at 7.4 billion manats [$7.05 billion] until late 2015, which is 28 percent less than SOFAZ’s income approved for this year,” SOFAZ said………………………………………..Full Article: Source

Azerbaijan’s state oil fund’s (Sofaz) assets fell by 6.38 percent to $34.7 billion by Oct. 1 from the start of the year, the fund said on Monday, hit by the drop in global oil prices. Sofaz holds the proceeds from oil contracts, oil and gas sales, transit fees and other revenue. It uses income from investments to fund social spending and infrastructure projects.
The fund said its revenue reached 5.5 billion manats ($5.2 billion) by Oct. 1, while expenditures were 6.4 billion manats. Sofaz said in September it had made its first real estate investment in Japan, buying retail property Kirarito Ginza in Tokyo for 52.3 billion yen ($432.27 million) with Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation………………………………………..Full Article: Source