Sovereign Wealth Fund

Saudi Arabia is planning to establish what could be the world’s biggest sovereign wealth fund, worth more than $900 billion. Current title holder Abu Dhabi controls more than $850 billion in assets.

Of late government-owned investment funds in the Middle East and Asia are playing an increasingly active role in channelling capital to western companies. Gulf investors have spent about $70 billion on overseas acquisitions this year. With oil hovering around $90 a barrel, Gulf producers including Saudi Arabia and U.A.E. earn more than $1.2 billion a day from their energy sales.

Abu Dhabi -

1. Citigroup Inc., the biggest U.S. bank by assets, received a $7.5 billion cash infusion from Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) to replenish capital after record mortage losses wiped out half its market value in November. With the purchase of a 4.9% stake, ADIA would rank as Citigroup's largest shareholder.
2. Another state-backed firm, Mubadala Development Co. bought a 7.5% stake in buyout firm Carlyle Group.

Dubai -

1. Dubai World invested as much as $5.1 billion in MGM Mirage, to try to tap into the Las Vegas based company's U.S. gaming and real estate earnings in August.
2. Dubai International Financial Center bought a 2.2% of Deutsche Bank AG in May

Saudi Arabia -

1. SABIC, the biggest chemicals company by market value, bought General Electric Co.'s plastics unit for $11.6 billion in a record acquisition for the Gulf.

China -

1. Bear Stearns, the fifth-biggest U.S. securities firm, sold a 6% stake to government-controlled Citic Securities Co. for about $1 billion.
2. Earlier this May, China Investment Corp., the nation's $200 billion sovereign wealth fund paid $3 billion for a stake in private equity firm Blackstone Group LP.
3. Barclays Plc, the U.K.'s third-biggest lender, sold a 6.7% stake to China Development Bank in July.

Singapore -

1. UBS, the world's largest wealth manager sold a roughly 9% stake to the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation this month to stop a fresh round of subprime writedowns.

Merrill Lynch predicts the value of assets controlled by the funds will quadruple to $8 trillion by 2011, and that they could soon exceed the entire hedge fund industry in terms of market influence.