Where the World's Richest Countries Invest (2024)

Economic Terms

Where the World's Richest Countries Invest

ByKimberly Amadeo

Updated on April 27, 2022

Reviewed by

Robert C. Kelly

Reviewed byRobert C. Kelly

Robert Kelly is managing director of XTS Energy LLC, and has more than three decades of experience as a business executive. He is a professor of economics and has raised more than $4.5 billion in investment capital.

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Where the World's Richest Countries Invest (2)

A sovereign wealth fund is an investment pool of foreign currencyreserves owned by a government. The largest investment pools are owned by countries that have a trade surplus, such as China and oil-exporting countries. They take in foreign currencies, primarily U.S. dollars,in exchange for their exports. Thefunds are then invested to produce the highestreturn possible.

Sovereign Wealth Funds vs. Central Banks

Before getting into more detail about sovereign wealth funds, it's important to distinguish between sovereign wealth funds and similar—but different—financial entities. Similar funds held by nations'central banksare not sovereign wealth funds because they have different goals. A central bankholds funds to manage the value of its currency, to stimulate the economy, or to prevent inflation. A sovereign wealth fund just wants to earn a high return.

Here are some other funds that may be confused with sovereign wealth funds:

Funds held by state-owned companies
Government employee pension funds
Private wealth funds

How Sovereign Wealth Funds Affect the U.S. Economy

The amount of money held by the largest sovereign wealth funds has more than doubled since September 2007, from $3.265 trillion to$9.1 trillion in 2021. Their asset holdings are now double that of allhedge fundscombined.

These funds are big enough to affect overall markets. For example, they took large stakes in Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, and Merrill Lynch during the financial crisis. They contributed toasset bubblesin London and New York real estate. These funds have increasing influence as investors become more sophisticated.

Sovereign Wealth Fund Ranking

Norway's Government Pension Fund is the largest, according to the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute.As of August 2021, it held nearly $1.1 trillion.Its profits are from the state-owned North Sea oil-drilling operation, making it susceptible to drops in oil prices.

Note

High oil pricesspurred the growth of large wealth funds between 2007 and 2014. During that time, nearly 60%of their assets were from oil and gas revenues. The2008 financial crisisbarely slowed their growth.

Middle Eastern Funds

Middle Eastern economies also rely heavily on oil exports. They make up about a third of the total wealth insovereign funds.

Top 10 Middle Eastern Funds (in billions)	Country	2021
Norway Government Pension Fund Global	Norway	$1,364
China Investment Corp.	China	$1,222
Kuwait Investment Authority	Kuwait	$693
Abu Dhabi Investment Authority	UAE	$649
Hong Kong Monetary Authority	Hong Kong	$580
GIC	Singapore	$545
Temasek Holdings	Singapore	$484
National Council for Social Security	China	$447
Public Investment Fund	Saudi Arabia	$430
Investment Corp. of Dubai	UAE	$422

Chinese Funds

China benefits from a massive export economy that collects largeholdings of foreign currencythat need to be invested. Export-funded sovereign wealth funds occur in several countries, but the best example may be inChina, where there are five sovereign wealth funds. Combined, these funds invest trillions of dollars. China's central bank manages the rest of the government's funds to regulate its currency. State-run corporations and banks invest in these wealth funds as well.Each fund hasseparate goals.

China Investment Corp: This fund boasts just over $1.2 trillion in assets. As of 2021, roughly 42.5% of this fund's portfolio was made up of "alternative assets" including real estate, infrastructure, and hedge fund investments
SAFE Investment Company: This fund, with roughly $417 billion in assets under management, incorporates three investment entities based overseas. They include the Investment Company of the People’s Republic of China in Singapore, Gingko Tree in the UK, and Beryl Datura in the British Virgin Islands.
Hong Kong Monetary Authority: With more than $580 billion in assets, this fund invests in the Hang Seng stock market and supports the financial stability of Hong Kong
China's National Social Security Fund: This fund currently manages $447 billion in assets. It manages funds recovered from state-owned businesses and other government investment proceeds. It invests mostly in China.
China-Africa Development Fund: This fund manages $5 billion worth of assets, all of which are intended to "promote the development of Sino-African commercial ties."

Singapore

The city-state of Singapore has two wealth funds, holdingmore than $800billion in total. The funds come from the high savings and investment rates of the people and businesses in this world-class financial center.

The largest is the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation, now theGIC Private Limitedfund. It holds $545 billion. It'sowned and funded by the government. It’s subdivided into three smaller enterprises:

GIC Asset Management: It invests in equities, bonds, foreign exchange, and alternative investments.
GIC Real Estate: This fund holds properties around the world, as well as investments inREITs.
GIC Special Investments Private Limited: This isone of the world's largestprivate equity firms. It invests in leveraged buyouts, venturecapital, and infrastructure.

Singapore's other wealth fund isTemasek. It invests $484 billionthrough 120 subsidiaries. It focuses on investments inAsia and energy-related investments. It purchases stocks instead of direct investments.Temasek opened a New York-based office in 2013.Analysts expectedthat the new Temasek office would come with a change its strategy—from owning small stakes in blue-chip, publicly-listed companies, to major direct investments.

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