Romania's government initiates procedures for sovereign fund launch

The Government decided on Thursday to approve the initial procedures for the creation of the Sovereign Fund of Development and Investments, said the Economy minister, Alexandru Petrescu.

„We adopted today a memorandum, according to the Governing program 2017-2020, aiming to create new instruments of public investments, the creation of Sovereign Fund of Development and Investments (FSDI) being a measure of economic stimulation, an instrument of financing in investments in competitive sectors, profitable and sustainable, with a multiplication effect in economy, as a result of the capital attraction and sources from the financial market,” said Petrescu.

According to the Economy minister, FSDI will represent a partner for the institutional investors, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the European Investment Bank (EIB), World Bank, the investments funds and other private investments.

„Through this document, we only mark the initiative and the start of this process. We formalized the setting up of some inter-ministries commissions, with representatives of the Economy Ministry, the Finance Ministry, representatives of Competition Council, ASF. Today is the day in which we formalize the process, starting tomorrow these commissions are formally gathering and giving opinions,” said Petrescu.

According to him, there were discussions also with the main players in the national investments area, so that the launching process of the fund to go together with the „approval and their general willingness.”

At the same time the Economy minister also said that a bill regarding the effective functioning of the fund will be adopted.

FSDI will contribute both to the Romania’s effort of obtaining the status of emerging market on the local capital market by increasing the liquidity on the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB) and to the increase the absorption level of European funds by ensuring the financial sources of co-financing the investments projects, says a Government release.