Page 4 - EurOil Week 35

EurOil COMMENTARY EurOil

New CEO takes helm of

Norwegian fund

The hedge fund manager has had to shed his prized stake in AKO and will pay
annual wealth tax in Norway far exceeding his salary for the position

NORWAY A new head of Norway’s sovereign wealth fund stocks and large portfolios of bonds and real
took office on September 1, pledging to con- estate, is managed by Norges Bank Investment
WHAT: tinue creating wealth for Norwegian future Management (NBIM). This week a new CEO
Billionaire hedge fund generations. took over at the helm.
manager Nicolai Tangen The Government Pension Fund Global was Nicolai Tangen, a 54-year-old billionaire
has taken over as CEO of created 30 years ago and has ballooned to a $1.2 Norwegian hedge fund manager, will work for
Norway’s oil fund. trillion size by accumulating revenues from oil, a comparatively modest salary of NOK6.65mn
making it the largest sovereign wealth fund in ($760,000) annually. He has a five-year term
WHY: the world. While there are limits on how much which can be renewed once.
Tangen describes it as a governments can withdraw, the fund has helped Tangen’s appointment was mired in contro-
dream job, even though it steer Norway through times of economic hard- versy when it was first announced in March, as
has cost him financially. ship. In May, the government withdrew $41.4bn it emerged that he intended to maintain a 43%
to cover a rare budget deficit – its first in 25 stake in London-based AKO Capital, founded
WHAT NEXT: years – caused by the loss of oil and gas revenues by Tangen in 2005 and considered his life’s work.
He will need to navigate and increased spending to mitigate against the This sparked concerns about conflicts of interest.
the fund through major impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdowns. Under pressure from Norway’s parliament,
market turbulence. The fund, which owns 1.5% of globally listed though, Tangen agreed last week to donate his

P4 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 35 03•September•2020