The Norwegian sovereign wealth fund has decided to close its only office in China

The Norwegian sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, has decided to closing its only office in China while maintaining investments in this country. Its Shanghai office has been operating since November 2007, the foundation said in a statement. It currently has eight employees. The fund explains the decision to close the office by “working aspects”, since the office in Singapore also coped with the function of servicing China.

The assets of the Norwegian sovereign wealth fund now exceed $1.4 trillion. It invests in more than 9,200 companies in 70 countries. At the end of 2022, the fund invested in almost 850 Chinese companies worth about $42 billion. The fund had the largest volume of investments in China in 2020 – $47 billion.

As noted Reuters, many financial companies are now reconsidering their presence in China in the face of tightening regulatory oversight in this country and deteriorating political relations between China and the West. The Norwegian sovereign wealth fund did not respond to Reuters’ question about whether the decision to close the office was related to political tensions or cybersecurity issues. However, as informed sources told the agency, employees of the fund’s Shanghai office expressed dissatisfaction with the upcoming closure.

Alena Miklashevskaya