The National - News

Qatar may sell trophy assets amid dispute with Gulf neighbours

▶ Country’s sovereign wealth fund has already disposed of holdings

- Bloomberg

One of the world’s biggest buyers of trophy assets is becoming a seller.

Isolated by powerful Arab neighbors, Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund is reversing a decade-long run in high-profile foreign investment­s to buttress its own economy.

The Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), which has reduced its direct holdings in Credit Suisse Group, Rosneft and Tiffany & Co in recent months, is considerin­g selling more of its US$320 billion of assets, which includes stakes in Glencore and Barclays, and channellin­g the proceeds into its home market.

Bankers and lawyers who used to pitch acquisitio­n targets to the QIA are now proposing asset sales, and have been told not to expect any major investment­s by the fund in the near term, the people said. The fund has not formally hired financial advisers to sell assets but is considerin­g which stakes are best positioned to be sold, they said.

The QIA declined to comment.

Created in 2005 to handle Qatar’s windfall from liquefied natural gas sales, of which it is the world’s biggest exporter, the QIA and other Qatari investors have amassed holdings in Hollywood, New York office space, London residentia­l property, luxury Italian fashion and even a football team.

The QIA ranks as the ninth largest globally, according to the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute.

After a dip in transactio­ns in 2015 and 2016 as oil prices slumped, the fund regained its appetite for deals late last year, investing in Turkey’s biggest poultry producer, Rosneft, and UK gas company National Grid, all within a couple of months. A Saudi-led dispute that started in June has put the brakes on those plans.

The QIA plans to spend most of what remains of its $45bninvest­ment target on US assets as it seeks diversific­ation, chief executive Sheikh Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Saud Al Thani said last month.

The fund is also considerin­g selling some of its extensive property portfolio, especially in the UK where it owns stakes in London’s Savoy Hotel, the Shard skyscraper and the Olympic Village, according to a person familiar with the matter.

The QIA plans to sell an office building in London’s Canary Wharf financial district that is leased to Credit Suisse, people familiar with the matter said last month.

The QIA has injected billions of dollars into local banks to shore up liquidity after some lenders in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain started withdrawin­g funds from the country.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt all severed diplomatic and transport links with Qatar on June 5, accusing the nation of supporting Sunni extremist groups and Iranian-backed militants.

The QIA last year experience­d its biggest overhaul since 2014, grouping $100bn of investment­s in local companies into a new unit and abandoning the Qatar Holding name synonymous with its highest-profile deals, people with knowledge of the matter said at the time.

The fund is considerin­g selling some of its property portfolio in the UK, where it owns stakes in Savoy Hotel, the Shard and the Olympic Village

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United Arab Emirates