As the world’s mightiest sovereign wealth funds wrapped up only their second annual meeting under the auspices of the International Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds in Sydney, confusion remained over how much capital these funds actually control.
The IFSWF’s precursor body unhelpfully estimated their combined size at anywhere between $2,000bn to $3,000bn. But research groups and think-tanks have more recently said the number was closer to $3,600bn to $3,800bn.
Currency swings, shifts in investment portfolio value, and investment returns will influence size at any given point. But the pleas from SWFs to be greeted openly no matter where they invest would be helped if more was known about the quantity of capital they control.
The SWFs are a highly individual bunch. The Norwegian and Aussie funds are among the most transparent, while some of the Gulf funds, notably the Qatar Investment Authority that has just bought London department store group Harrods, are famous for being secretive.
The SWFs don’t travel as a herd either. No one fund is like another, and investment agendas are dictated by a range of factors, including size, age, and funding mechanisms.
The IFSWF has made progress in promoting better understanding but let’s hope for a bit more public information by the time they meet next year in Beijing.
Stefan Wagstyl
Josh Noble
Rob Minto
Pan Kwan Yuk
Jonathan Wheatley
Heba Saleh