S’pore wealth funds open, commercially-driven: PM Lee

From The Straits Times, Jan 25, 2008

DAVOS (Switzerland) – SINGAPORE’S sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) are open and invest commercially to pursue long-term returns, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong told Reuters on Friday.

He added that the SWFs will further improve their transparency.

Mr Lee, speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum, also said Asian capital markets had experienced a rollercoaster ride this week but he hoped that this would not seriously affect real economies of the region.

Tharman says not govt’s role to comment on GIC, Temasek investments

By Wong Siew Ying, Channel NewsAsia, Jan 21, 2008

SINGAPORE: It is not the government’s role to comment on or second-guess whether it was timely for the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC) and Temasek Holdings to make their recent investments, Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam said.

Responding to a question in Parliament on how GIC and Temasek Holdings had injected funds into distressed banks like UBS and Merrill Lynch, the minister said, “They make these decisions for commercial reasons based on calculations free of any influence from the government.”

Govt to take ‘hands off’ approach on state funds: Tharman

From The Straits Times, Jan 21 2008

THE Government will take a ‘hands off’ approach on investments made by its sovereign wealth funds in banks including Citigroup Inc. amid the subprime meltdown, Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam said in Parliament on Monday.

The recent multi-billion-dollar investments in ailing global financial institutions were made purely from a commercial standpoint, he told the House.

The government plays no role in how the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC) and investment firm Temasek Holdings decide their investment policies, said Mr Tharman.

S’pore firm picks stake in Edelweiss NBFC

From Business Standard, Jan 18, 2008

By Reena Zachariah

Deals in the non banking financial company (NBFC) space is gathering space in the new year.

An arm of the government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC) has picked up a stake in ECL Finance, the NBFC subsidiary of Mumbai-headquartered Edelweiss Capital.  In a filing with the Bombay Stock Exchange, Edelweiss Capital said it has finalized the terms of investment in its subsidiary, ECL Finance, along with a few other investors.  

The size of the investment will be Rs 400 crore and it will be through subscription to fresh equity issuance which would comprise 23.3 per cent of the post issue capital of ECL Finance.  Post the fund raising process, the company�s shareholding in ECL Finance will be reduced to 62.5 per cent from the existing 74 per cent.

The remaining is held by Lehman Brothers.  GIC is already an investor in Edelweiss Capital after it made its first investment in the company in December 2006.

Exclusive: Singapore’s GIC To Invest Rs 150 Crore In Edelweiss NBFC Arm

From VC Circle, Jan 18, 2008

An arm of the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC) is investing Rs 150 crore in ECL Finance Ltd (ECLF), the non banking finance arm of Mumbai based institutional broking and investment banking firm Edelweiss Capital, VC Circle has learned. This follows a series of investments by multinational investment firms in Indian NBFCs in the last one year such as Temasek’s acquisition of Chennai-based NBFC Dove Finance.

Lathe Investment Pte Ltd, the wholly owned subsidiary of GIC, will acquire 40 million shares of ECLF of Re 1 at Rs 30 a share aggregating to a total of Rs 120 crore. This will be 6.7 per cent of the share capital of ECLF at the time of transaction.

Singapore’s GIC says Citi, UBS investments unique

Reuters, Jan 16, 2008

By Kevin Lim

SINGAPORE, Jan 16 (Reuters) – Singapore’s biggest sovereign wealth fund said on Wednesday its large investments in banks Citigroup Inc (C.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and UBS AG (UBSN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research) are unique at a time of financial turmoil and did not represent a strategy shift.

The Government of Singapore Investment Corp (GIC), which has historically kept a low profile unlike sister fund Temasek Holdings [TEM.UL], on Tuesday purchased $6.88 billion worth of Citigroup convertible stock after the U.S. lender wrote off $18.1 billion for losses tied to subprime home loans and risky debt.

Singapore invests $300mln in US property hedge fund

From Reuters, Jan 16, 2008

SINGAPORE, Jan 16 (Reuters) – The Government of Singapore Investment Corp (GIC) said on Wednesday it has committed $300 million to a U.S. hedge fund for investing in real estate securities, as it sees opportunities amid a U.S. housing slump.

GIC’s real estate investment arm will also acquire a minority stake in the fund, California-based Rosen Real Estate Securities, which is run by Kenneth Rosen, a professor of real estate and urban economics at the University of California in Berkeley.

“With the recent downturn in the U.S. REIT market, we believe this could be an opportune time to invest in selected REIT investment opportunities that may arise in the current environment,” said Michael Carp, GIC Real Estate’s regional head for the Americas told Reuters.

Singapore GIC Invests US$300M In US Hedge Fund – Report

Dow Jones, Jan 15, 2008

SINGAPORE (Dow Jones)–The Government of Singapore Investment Corporation is investing US$300 million in Rosen Real Estate Securities, a U.S.-based property hedge fund, The Straits Times reported, quoting a GIC offical.

According to the article, GIC has also acquired a minority stake in Rosen Real Estate Securities.

The Straits Times said Singapore is looking to invest in real estate companies around the world, as the global credit squeeze and economic slowdown drives down property values.

GIC, which manages Singapore’s foreign exchange reserves, has also recently agreed to invest about US$9.6billion in UBS AG and about US$6.9 billion Citigroup, two banks that have suffered heavy losses from the fallout from the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis.

GIC’s investments

GIC invests US$6.88b in Citigroup

Straits Times, Jan 15, 2008

GIC invests US$6.88b in Citigroup

By Grace Ng, Finance Correspondent

THE GOVERNMENT of Singapore Corporation (GIC) has invested US$6.88 billion (S$9.83 billion) for a slice of troubled banking giant Citi.

GIC, which manages Singapore‘s reserves, will invest the largest share of the US$12.5 billion in funds that Citi is raising from a group of investors that include the Kuwait Investment Authority.