Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund invested $2 billion in Russia before the Ukraine war, report says

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Alexey Nikolsky/Getty Images

• Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund invested $2 billion in Russia before the Ukraine invasion.
• A prospectus for the fund revealed investments in Russia's infrastructure, manufacturing, logistics and retail sectors, the Wall Street Journal said.
• The Public Investment Fund, which is run by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, oversees $600 billion in assets. 

Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund invested $2 billion into Russian assets before the Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine, according to a report from the Wall Street Journal. 

The Public Investment Fund, which is run by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, oversees $600 billion in assets. While it typically keeps details about its investments under tight wraps, it has circulated a prospectus for a planned bond sale.

According to a prospectus viewed by the Journal, the PIF invested the $2 billion in Russia's infrastructure, manufacturing, logistics and retail sectors. That came as part of an earlier agreement with Russia.

In 2015, the PIF said it would pour up to $10 billion in the government-run Russia Direct Investment Fund over the next five years. 

However, the PIF said proceeds from the planned bond sale wouldn't be used for further investments in Russia, citing the "ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict and the imposition of international sanctions on" the Russian fund.

The funds would instead be meant for renewable energy and so-called green projects, according to the prospectus. 

Last month, a separate Saudi fund also disclosed recent investments in Russia. Regulatory filings revealed that Saudi Arabia's Kingdom Holding, which is controlled by billionaire Prince Alwaleed Bin Tala, poured more than $500 million in Russia's top energy companies between February and March of this year.

That included $365 million in global depository receipts of Gazprom, $52 million in global depository receipts of Rosneft, and $109 million in Lukoil's US depository receipts.

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