Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC has promised greater disclosure about its activities, amid mounting concerns about the secretive fund’s influence after $16bn of high-profile investments in UBS and Citigroup. Tony Tan, deputy chairman of GIC and a former Singapore deputy prime minister, said the fund planned to become more transparent as part of a broader effort by sovereign wealth funds to agree a set of common standards. GIC says it manages more than $100bn. Analysts estimate three-times that amount. Mr Tan insisted GIC was interested only in a financial return, and revealed the fund had recently rejected an offer from UBS to nominate a board director. He said the investments in UBS and Citigroup were unusual and did not reflect GIC’s “preferred mode of investment”. Former prime minister Tony Blair, meanwhile, took an opportunity in an interview with the WSJ to warn US politicians against the dangers of protectionism.

This entry was posted by Sam Jones on Monday, January 28th, 2008 at 4:40 and is filed under Capital markets. Tagged with gic. Edit this entry.