The Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute (also SWF Institute, or simply SWFI) is an American corporation that analyzes public asset owners such as sovereign wealth funds and other long-term governmental investors. Initially, the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute focused solely on sovereign wealth funds. It has branched out to cover all types of public institutional investors. The institute sells its subscription and API/datafeed services as a financial data vendor but provides information to the media as well.[1][2][3]
Incorporated in 2008, it was founded by Michael Maduell and shortly he brought in Carl Linaburg,[4] who then left the organization in 2017. In late 2022, Lakshmi Narayanan of the Patel Family Office was named Chairman of SWFI.[5]
SWFI sells its research and data via subscriptions to asset managers, banks, researchers, universities, governments, institutional investors, asset owners, corporations, law firms and other entities.
In 2020, SWFI started to initiate coverage over family office sector and wealth management firms.
Transparency ratings
The SWFI came out with the Linaburg-Maduell Transparency Index in 2008. It is a 10-point scale based on ten principles of transparency, each adding one point to the index rating. The index is used by sovereign wealth funds in their annual reports.[6][7]
Data
The SWFI tracks direct deals in sovereign wealth funds, pensions, asset owners, and other entities. The value of global direct deals by sovereign-wealth funds hit $50.02 billion in the first half of 2014.[8]
SWFI tracks the assets of the following types but not limited:
Norway's sovereign wealth fund crossed $1 trillion in assets in 2017.[9]
- sovereign wealth fund
- pension
- endowment
- family office
- wealth manager
- financial holding company
- foundation
- central bank
- bank
- venture capital
- asset manager
- other entities
See also
- International Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds
References
- Susanna Kim. Why Norwegians Are Millionaires and Americans Are Paupers ABC News, retrieved 11 January 2014^
- Javier Blas. Protecting Nigeria oil SWF is no easy task Financial Times, retrieved 10 October 2013^
- Saad Abedine. Body of Abu Dhabi sovereign-wealth fund chief found CNN, retrieved 31 March 2010^
- Brad Allen. Is there an SWF in your future? IR Magazine, 30 May 2014^
- Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute Names Lakshmi Narayanan as Chairman of the Board Businesswire, 24 October 2022^
- The State Oil Fund of the Republic of Azerbaijan ranks among the highest in Transparency Index SOFAZ, retrieved 11 April 2009^
- NSIA Rated Transparent by Sovereign Wealth Institute Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority, 16 July 2014, retrieved 4 August 2014^
- Dan Dunkley. Sovereign-Wealth Funds Pump Near Record Amount of Cash in Deals Wall Street Journal, 7 August 2014^
- Norway's sovereign-wealth fund passes the $1trn mark The Economist, 23 September 2017^