Moscow and Beijing’s joint investment fund to grow to US$2 billion, paving way for ‘dozens of deals’
The scope of the planned investments points to closer China-Russia ties, fund CEO Kirill Dmitriev told the South China Morning Post
A joint China-Russia investment fund with a capital base that is about to double to US$2 billion will invest in “dozens of deals” that signal deepening financial ties between Beijing and Moscow.
The Russia-China Investment Fund, jointly set up by sovereign wealth funds China Investment Corp and Russian Direct Investment Fund, has completed the paperwork for the capital increase, the fund’s chief executive, Kirill Dmitriev, told the South China Morning Post in Beijing.
Established in June 2012, the fund has become a channel for Russia, under the sanctions of Western countries, to secure funding support from deep-pocketed Beijing. Dmitriev, who holds an MBA with high distinction from Harvard Business School, is using the fund as a platform to spur Chinese investment in Russia.
The fund will partner with the China-Eurasian Economic Cooperation Fund that is backed by the Export and Import Bank of China. It will invest in Russian oil service firm Eurasia Drilling Co and United Transport Concession Holding to finance two roads in Moscow and a light rail transport grid in St. Petersburg, according to Dmitriev.
The joint fund already has invested more than US$1 billion in 19 projects, including Chinese taxi hailing service Didi Chuxing, a railway bridge on the China-Russian border and Russian retail chain Lenta.