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35-year-old Sheikh Saoud takes KIA’s reins as Al-Ghaniman retires early

18th November, 2024

Last week was rather eventful among the SWFs of the Arabian Gulf. In Qatar, QIA changed its leadership on Tuesday, after Al Mahmoud was appointed Minister of Health. In Saudi, PIF decided to change the CEO of its flagship project NEOM on Wednesday, in an effort to ensure the success of the job. In Abu Dhabi, ADIA reported its annual results on Thursday, which according to Global SWF estimates may have signaled a new milestone for its portfolio. And that same day in Kuwait, KIA confirmed the retirement of its MD Ghanem Al-Ghaniman.

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Kuwaiti Government Plans to Rebuild Depleted Stabilization Fund Through Fiscal Restraint

23rd July, 2024

Kuwait’s finance minister has revealed that the country’s fiscal stabilization, the Government Reserve Fund (GRF) overseen by the Kuwait Investment Authority, is heavily depleted, with liquidity falling by around 95% in the decade to end-March to less than KWD2 billion (US$6.5 billion).

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IMF Demands Pakistan Scraps SWF as a Condition for Support

11th July, 2024

Governance concerns have reportedly prompted the IMF to demand the abolition of the Pakistan Sovereign Wealth Fund as a condition for any new financial bailouts, in what is the biggest challenge to the country’s bid to create a state-owned investor.

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KIA's Uncertainty is Lifted as Emir Dissolves Kuwaiti Parliament

14th May, 2024

The US$846 billion Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) is unlikely to escape the impact of the political upheaval in Kuwait over the weekend, but the developments could finally end the uncertainty that has clouded the fund in recent years.

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Bpifrance Forges Deals with KIA, QIA and Mubadala for French Startups

13th May, 2024

France’s strategic investor Bpifrance has strengthened its relationships with Gulf peers with a series of agreements with sovereign wealth funds of Kuwait, Qatar and Abu Dhabi committing capital to French startups.

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Championing Consolidation: Gulf SWFs Create Global TowerCo Giants

25th April, 2024

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has forged a joint venture deal with the Kingdom’s telecoms company STC which sees it acquire a 51% stake in Telecommunication Towers Company Limited (TAWAL), which is set to form the basis of the Middle East’s biggest telecommunications infrastructure company – and a global player.

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GCC Surpluses Highly Dependent on Oil Prices – and Geopolitics

19th April, 2024

On Thursday this week, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) published its latest fiscal oil price breakeven in the statistical appendix of its Middle East overview. These are important figures, as they reflect the fiscal situation of the countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), when compared to current oil prices.

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Sovereign Investors' Slash Chinese Equities to Multi-Year Low

9th November, 2023

State-owned investors continued to slash their Chinese equity holdings in 2023 due to heightened geopolitical risks, poor returns and reduced IPOs.

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Political Disputes and Criminal Allegations Surround KIA's London Office

17th October, 2023

Kuwait’s recently appointed Minister of Finance Fahd al-Jarallah has referred alleged legal violations by the London office – the Kuwait Investment Office (KIO) – of the country’s sovereign wealth fund to the public prosecutor.

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Rotation continues at KIA’s Executive Management, SWF industry loses a leading figure

2nd October, 2023

Aliah Al Tameemi, the Head of Alternatives of the Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA), has been replaced by Salah Al Muraikhi, a Director of the Hedge Funds program. This represents the latest move among the sovereign wealth fund’s executive management, which has seen 70% of its members (including all heads of investment) change in the past 15 months.

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Does Multi-Billion Asset Transfer Signal Mission Creep for Kuwait's Social Security Fund?

25th August, 2023

The Kuwaiti government’s decision to transfer KWD2.5 billion (US$8.1 billion) of landholdings to the country’s social security fund, instead of its sovereign wealth fund, comes amid long-standing political disputes over the direction of the US$801 billion Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA), one of the world’s biggest and oldest SWFs.

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London-based Kuwait Investment Office concludes search for CEO

17th August, 2023

On Wednesday, the Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) appointed Abdulmohsin Al Mukhaizeem as permanent President and Chief Executive Officer for its London branch, the Kuwait Investment Office (KIO).

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