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Definition / Meaning of

Sovereign Wealth Funds

Categories: Mutual Funds,

SWF. Foreign investment funds owned by national governments and financed by the country's foreign currency reserves (dollar, euro, yen), often through their central banks or via direct investments. The term sovereign wealth fund was introduced in 2005, but the first SEF was introduced in 1953 by the government of Kuwait (' kuwait investment authority,' a commodity SWF). These funds are now major players in the world financial markets. The combined assets of the major SWFs (owned by 20 governments) have reached over three trillion dollars, and are expected to reach over 10 trillion dollars by 2012. Although the current total amount makes up only some 3 percent of the world's traded securities, the SWFs already have tremendous concentrated financial power. Over half of the SWF assets are owned by oil and gas exporting nations, and about one third by Australia, China, and Singapore. SWFs are aggressive investors and have bought into firms as diverse as Morgan Stanley, General Electric, and Sony.