Doha May 23 2023: Qatar Investment Authority has been very active in private and public credit over the past two years, CEO Mansoor Ebrahim Al-Mahmoud said on Tuesday.
"Companies that have been feeling the tide, they have a good business models but they have an issue with their balance sheet because of this acceleration of hikes of interest rates," al-Mahmoud told an audience at the Qatar Economic Forum, organised by Bloomberg.
"So normally institutions like us, which are very liquid, very long term, have a risk appetite in these types of investment. I would advise that for the next maybe one year, the credit space would be an interesting space to deploy some investment," al-Mahmoud said.
The $445 billion sovereign wealth fund is examining AI as a theme of investments and sees it as a "wonderful technology" in some applications, he added.
Private-credit firms are eyeing new opportunities from a potential borrowing squeeze in the United States as regional banks tighten lending after turmoil in the sector, fund managers and investment strategists said.
Blackstone Inc (BX.N), one of the world's largest private lenders, said it saw a "golden moment" to expand its credit business as banks retrenched.
The Qatar fund separately announced on Tuesday it was committing up to 1 billion riyals ($275 million) towards a permanent market-making programme that would enhance liquidity on the local bourse.
Last week, Qatar Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani issued a royal decree to reorganise the QIA, the Emiri Diwan said in a statement on May 16.
In a statement on Monday, the QIA said the decree confirms an enhanced governance framework for the sovereign wealth fund, enabling effective oversight and management of its operations.
"We have taken this opportunity to ensure that our governance framework further aligns with international best practices observed by sovereign wealth funds," QIA's chief Mansoor Ebrahim Al-Mahmoud said in the statement.
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