Folketrygdfondet, the manager of Norway's domestic sovereign wealth fund, is being tasked with administering a new EUR 4.4 billion bond fund to help Norwegian companies access liquidity during the corona crisis.
Folketrygdfondet is to manage the new Norwegian Government Bond Fund, the government announces. The asset manager is presently managing the Government Pension Fund Norway (GPFN) which is the smaller Nordic-investment portion of the country's huge sovereign wealth fund – the oil fund. According to investors' news site Ipe.com, Folketrygdfondet will now reprise one of the roles it played in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, when it managed the Government Bond Fund which invested in Norwegian companies between 2009 and 2014. The restoration of the Government Bond Fund was one of the measures announced on Sunday, with the proposed fund being managed by Folketrydfondet and having a limit of up to NOK 50 billion (EUR 4.4 billion) to be invested in bonds issued by Norwegian companies. Folketrydfondet's chief executive officer Kjetil Houg, said: "We have the expertise and experience and will be able to make the first investments as soon as the law and mandate are established." Investments in the bond fund will be made on market terms and is a temporary tool for the bond market, according to Folketrygdfondet.
This post originally appeared on AM Watch.
