Russia, China to set up $4 bln investment fund

Russia and China will sign an agreement on Tuesday to create an investment fund worth up to $4 billion, as Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin arrives in Beijing, Kommersant business daily reported.

Contributions of $1 billion, to the Russian-Chinese Investment Fund (RCIF) will be made by the Russian Direct Investment Fund, a new $10 billion state fund set up to attract foreign direct investment into Russia, and China Investment Corporation, a sovereign $410 billion fund. The rest will come from outside investors, mainly Chinese, in the next 18 months, Kommersant quoted a RCIF memorandum as saying.

The Russian Direct Investment Fund will control RCIF’s management company.

“Such distribution of authority in the management company is preconditioned by the fact that the Russian party will carry the main burden of developing the fund’s portfolio, forming its management,” a government source said.

Russia’s state-run bank VEB will be a strategic partner of the fund and provide financing.

There is as yet no list of projects RCIF will invest in. The only condition for investment is that no less than 70 percent of the money must be invested in Russia or the CIS.

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