As of end-2021, Norway’s Government Pension Fund Global, the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund managed by Norges Bank Investment Management, stood at 12.3 trillion kroner (approximately $1.4 trillion), returning 14.5% during the year, with its worldwide equity investments gaining 20.8%.

About 72% of the fund investment portfolio is in equities, followed by fixed income assets at 25.4%, unlisted real estate at 2.5% and unlisted renewable energy infrastructure at 0.1%. Around 48.8% of the fund was in North America, 31.7% in Europe, 15.6% in Asia and the rest in Oceania (2.1%), Latin America (0.6%), Africa (15.6%), Middle East (0.3%) and international organisations (0.6%).

The Government Pension Fund Global first entered Sri Lanka in 2015, investing $31 million in 12 listed companies. Despite its name, the fund does not pay pensions but is a saving of Norway’s North Sea oil wealth.

Norges Bank fund managers seek markets with stability and high standards of business conduct, and their only mandate is to safeguard and ensure further growth of the fund: the value of its Sri Lankan equity portfolio declined to $79.9 million as of 31 December 2021, down 30% from two years earlier despite the All Share Index of the Colombo Stock Exchange returning 91% in the two years.

Despite the Sri Lanka portfolio shrinking, and given the rapidly unravelling economy during this period after the 2019 Easter bombings and the Covid19 pandemic, Norges Bank Investment Management has demonstrated increasing faith in some companies, including battered hotel stocks.

The fund had increased its ownership (or exposure) in Commercial Bank, telco Dialog Axiata, conglomerate John Keells Holdings and fabric maker Teejay Lanka; the stake in Union Assurance was unchanged over the two years. The fund has reduced its equity investments in Cargills, Hatton National Bank, Hemas Holdings, Lion Brewery, Sampath Bank and Tokyo Cement.

It had exited DFCC Bank and Nations Trust Bank, subprime lenders Central Finance and People’s Leasing and Finance, Distilleries, Nestle Lanka, PGP Glass and Melstacorp. During that same period, the fund included BPPL Holdings, Ceylon Cold Stores, CIC Holdings, CT Holdings, tech company hSenid Business Solutions, conglomerate Sunshine Holdings, and hotel groups Aitken Spence Hotels, and increasing its John Keells Hotels stake.