The Rise of Sovereign Wealth Funds
| Date | Wednesday, July 9, 2008 |
| Location | Capitol Building, SC-115 |
Edwin Truman, senior fellow at Peterson Institute for International Economics and former assistant secretary of the US Treasury for International Affairs, and Tom Karol, president and chief operating officer of the Sovereign Investment Council, will join us for a discussion on the national security implications of sovereign wealth funds. Sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) are state-owned investments, mainly generated by surplus savings from developing countries. They have grown significantly due to rising energy prices and global trade imbalances. SWFs have provided large bail-out investments for some major US financial services corporations suffering from the effects of the economic downturn. Policymakers have raised questions about the intentions and strategies of SWFs, and the Treasury Department has recently established more stringent policies to assess particular SWF investments. How significant is sovereign wealth fund investment for the US economy? Is there a national security concern in allowing foreign states to hold significant stakes in US business? Are more regulations and investigation of these funds needed?
Security for a New Century is a bipartisan study group for Congress. We meet regularly with U.S. and international policy professionals to discuss the post-Cold War and post- 9/11 security environment. All discussions are off-the-record. It is not an advocacy venue. Please call (202) 223-5956 for more information.