Ministerial c'ttee approves sovereign wealth fund

Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz: The sovereign wealth fund we established to day will be an insurance policy for the country.

National Economics Committee chairman Prof. Eugene Kandel chaired the committee. Its members included the Ministry of Finance's budget director and accountant general, the deputy attorney general, and Fischer.

The committee's recommendations are based on international experience with sovereign wealth funds. The guiding principle is to benefit future generations through long-term management of the profits. Each year, the current profits from the return on the fund's investment will be allotted for socioeconomic and educational purposes, as determined by the government on the basis of the prime minister's statement on the matter. If needed, the fund's money will also help deal with unexpected events that could have a negative effect on the national economy, such as a war or earthquake.

The finance minister will head the sovereign wealth fund council, which will set the fund's investment policy and oversee its implementation. An expert investment committee will be established, which will comprise government and public representatives to implement the fund's investment policy. Management of the assets and their investment will be carried out by an expert committee set up for this purpose at the Bank of Israel.

Steinitz said, "We are now completing the historic measure that we started with the Sheshinski Committee. The sovereign wealth fund we established to day will be an insurance policy for the country, channeling resources to social budgets and protecting export industries."

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on October 23, 2012

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