At a glance
- Our profiles classify each fund by main purpose. One fund, one main type; many have a secondary type on their profile.
- Savings funds grow wealth for future generations. Development funds back the home economy. Stabilisation funds cushion the budget. Holding companies own state stakes.
- 206 operating funds compared; top-100 columns use the size ranking.
Key findings
- Savings funds hold the most top-100 capital: USD 5.4 trillion across 14 funds.
- Development funds are the most numerous (57 operating funds in our profiles).
- Development funds: 57 funds, median USD 7.05 billion, 61% invest mainly at home and 26% of their listed deals are co-investments or joint ventures.
- Savings funds: 39 funds and 14 in the top 100 worth USD 5.4 trillion; 8% invest mainly at home.
- Stabilisation funds: 17 funds, median USD 3.88 billion, 33 listed deals in total.
- Returns published: savings 67%, stabilisation 41%, development 28%.
- Sub-national funds rely most on fund commitments (59% of their listed deals).
- Average transparency: savings 5.9, development 6.2, stabilisation 5.4 out of 10.
Fund types side by side
| Type | Operating funds | In top 100 | Top 100 USD bn | Median USD bn | Avg transparency | Publish returns | Mainly domestic | Main funding |
|---|
| Savings | 39 | 14 | 5,383 | 3.78 | 5.9 | 67% | 8% | Oil and gas revenues |
| Stabilisation | 17 | 5 | 198 | 3.88 | 5.4 | 41% | 35% | Oil and gas revenues |
| Development | 57 | 27 | 2,308 | 7.05 | 6.2 | 28% | 61% | State equity holdings and privatisation proceeds |
| State holding | 33 | 23 | 3,160 | 19.3 | 6.4 | 21% | 64% | State equity holdings and privatisation proceeds |
| Pension reserve | 8 | 7 | 3,306 | 130 | 8.7 | 100% | 25% | Pension contributions or reserves |
| Reserve investment | 8 | 7 | 5,026 | 530 | 6.1 | 50% | 0% | Foreign exchange reserves |
| Sub-national | 41 | 15 | 595 | 2.88 | 6.6 | 61% | 22% | Oil and gas revenues |
| Fund of funds | 3 | 2 | 125 | 10.0 | 5.5 | 33% | 33% | State equity holdings and privatisation proceeds |
How each type invests
| Type | Deals listed | Direct | Fund commitments | Co-invest or JV | New companies | Exits |
|---|
| Savings | 153 | 48% | 22% | 20% | 4% | 7% |
| Stabilisation | 33 | 91% | 6% | 0% | 0% | 3% |
| Development | 425 | 49% | 13% | 26% | 7% | 5% |
| State holding | 250 | 56% | 1% | 21% | 11% | 10% |
| Pension reserve | 61 | 51% | 15% | 31% | 0% | 3% |
| Reserve investment | 61 | 51% | 20% | 26% | 0% | 3% |
| Sub-national | 145 | 28% | 59% | 5% | 3% | 6% |
| Fund of funds | 35 | 37% | 9% | 54% | 0% | 0% |
Where each type invests
| Type | Mainly domestic | Global | Domestic and global | Regional |
|---|
| Savings | 3 | 25 | 10 | 1 |
| Stabilisation | 6 | 7 | 1 | 3 |
| Development | 35 | 5 | 13 | 4 |
| State holding | 21 | 0 | 11 | 1 |
| Pension reserve | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Reserve investment | 0 | 6 | 2 | 0 |
| Sub-national | 9 | 16 | 16 | 0 |
| Fund of funds | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Typical assets and largest funds
| Type | Most common asset classes | Largest funds |
|---|
| Savings | Public equities, Fixed income, Cash and money markets | GPFG, the Norwegian oil fund, ADIA, KIA |
| Stabilisation | Cash and money markets, Fixed income, Public equities | National Wealth Fund of the Russian Federation, Texas ESF, FEIP |
| Development | Private equity, Private credit, Infrastructure | PIF, Mubadala, NDFI |
| State holding | Strategic state holdings, Private equity, Real estate | Danantara, ICD, TWF |
| Pension reserve | Public equities, Fixed income, Private equity | GPIF, CPP Investments, NSSF |
| Reserve investment | Fixed income, Public equities, Private equity | China Investment Corporation, GIC Private Limited, SAFE Investment (Huaan) |
| Sub-national | Fixed income, Public equities, Cash and money markets | APFC, QIC, TCorp |
| Fund of funds | Private equity, Venture capital, Infrastructure | Lunate, RDIF, Tesi |
What this means for you
- Founders and project sponsors: development funds (26% co-investments or joint ventures) and state holding companies are the natural door for domestic projects.
- Managers: fund commitments are 59% of listed deals for sub-national funds and 22% for savings funds. Check each profile for external manager use.
- Stabilisation funds list 33 deals between 17 funds. They are built for liquidity; unless you run liquid strategies, focus elsewhere.
- Sub-national funds (US states, Canadian provinces, cities) follow statutes. Read the rules first.
Data notes: Counts come from the investment, case study and size tables in our fund profiles. They cover the deals each profile lists, not every deal a fund has done, so read them as a guide, not a full census. Type is the main category on each fund profile.
Sources
Every figure on this page comes from the fund profiles linked in the tables. Source ids such as S3 refer to the numbered sources on each fund's own profile page, where the original document is listed with its date.
Disclaimer
Informational only. SovereignWealthFunds.com is an independent public-source reference. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by any fund named on it, and it is not investment, legal or tax advice. Figures are as of the dates shown next to them and may have changed; please read each fund's official pages, linked on its profile. To report an error, use the contact page. Copyright SovereignWealthFunds.com. All rights reserved.
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