Sovereign wealth fund as a subject of the private international law

• Author: Maria Kaurakova
• Position: Post-graduate student, Kutafin's Moscow State Law Academy
• Pages: 51-53

LESIJ NO. XX, VOL. 1/2013

SOVEREIGN WEALTH FUND AS A SUBJECT OF THE PRIVATE

INTERNATIONAL LAW

Maria KAURAKOVA

Abstract

This article covers the problem of the legal status of sovereign wealth funds in private international

law as a separate branch of the internal law in each jurisdiction.

Keywords: sovereign wealth fund, private international law, cross-border investment fund.

Public element in the structure-organizational component of the institutional investors

legal status as a legal construction characterizes cross -border investment funds as truly universal

tool of accumulation and movement of foreign direct and portfolio capital, which notion is

invariantlyă usedă ină relationă toă legală personsă ofă privateă andă publică law.ă It’să inherentă ină theă

individual type of cross-border investment funds called as sovereign wealth funds. By their

unique legal status in the private international law stipulated by the intensive implication into the

resolutionăofăpublicălawăproblemsăthey’reăsubjectăofăindependentălegalăresearch.ă

We start studying it here from examining of the notion content. Sovereign wealth funds

notion is widely used in doctrine and practice nevertheless it is not covered by law. Its legal

definition is impeded by the fact that the so -called life goal of the sovereign wealth funds is

mainlyăcontainedă inătheă canvasăofă theăstateă one.ăIt’săp redetermined by the unique public policy

and corresponding means for its realization. However its definition if holds, is made on the basis

of thorough analysis of independent characteristics in certain private-law or public-law spheres

of research or review of the terms used in the name of the notion. In line of the latter we will

start our study.

Theătermă“sovereignty”ătranslatedăfromătheăFrenchămeansăaăsetăofăsovereignărightsăthatătheă

state or its head is empowered of in accordance with the unique organizational structure of the

politicală system.ă Theă termă “fund”ă isă primarilyă usedă toă theă capitală foră theă particulară purpose.ă

“Wealth”ă – is a socio-political notion that determines the terms of sustainable human

development. In result of their examine sovereign wealth fund is the public capital used for the

sustainable development of the h uman, society and the state. By reason of its extremely abstract

characterăsuchădefinitionă can’tăbeăexclusivelyă usedăină theăpresentăpaper.ă Ităwillăbeă laterăclarifiedă

but even in the present version there is characteristic of the individu al type of cross-border

investmentăfunds.ăIt’sătheădirectăs tateăparticipationăinăitsăcreationăandă realizationăthroughăplacingă

of certain amounts of all oil, gas and other revenues in corporate or contract form. In the latter

caseăth ere’sănoă legală capacit yăforă theă distinctă legală andă economică being.ă Theseă areă Equatorială

Guinea Fund for Future Gen erations managed by the Bank of Central African States (BEAC),

Macroeconomic Stabilizatio n Fund regulated by the Board of the Central Bank of Venezuela.

According to the data of the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute

1, global organization designed to

study government investors in certain commercial and non-commercial areas, th ere are presently

65 funds. The first (Texas Permanen t School Fund) emerged in 1854 with the domicile of origin

in United States of America.

 Post-graduateăstudent,ăKutafin’săMoscowăStateăLawăAcademyă(e-mail: m.v.k.84@yandex.ru).

1 Sovereign Wealth Institute Site. [Electronic resource]. URL: www.swfininstitute.org