| Type | Sovereign wealth fund |
|---|---|
| Industry | Investment service |
| Founded | Beijing, China (2007) |
| Headquarters | Beijing, China |
| Key people |
Lou Jiwei (Chairman and CEO) |
| Operating income | US$ 54.802 Billion (2010)[1] |
| Net income | US$ 51.560 Billion (2010)[1] |
| Total assets | US$ 409.579 Billion (2010)[1] |
| Total equity | US$ 409.579 Billion (2010)[1] |
| Employees | 497 (2011)[1] |
| Subsidiaries | Central Huijin Investment Ltd. (Central Huijin) |
| Website | www.china-inv.cn |
China Investment Corporation (CIC) is a sovereign wealth fund responsible for managing part of the People's Republic of China's foreign exchange reserves. CIC was established in 2007 with approximately US$200 billion of assets under management, making it one of the largest sovereign wealth funds.[2][3] Since then, CIC's assets have grown to $410 billion at the end of 2010.
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The People's Republic of China has US$3.2 trillion in currency reserves. The China Investment Corporation was established with the intent of utilizing these reserves for the benefit of the state, modeled according to Temasek Holdings of Singapore. The state-owned Central Huijin Investment Corporation was merged into the new company as a wholly owned subsidiary company.[4]
The Corporation aims to invest in around fifty large-sized enterprises across the world. Special treasury bonds were issued to create the capital that the CIC needed. 1,550.35 billion yuan ($207.91 billion) was issued in this bond sale. The bond process was completed in December 2007.[5] According to Lou Jiwei, the CIC needs to make a profit of 300 million Yuan every day just to pay the interest on the bonds and operation costs. The low cost of capital of CIC leads to contentions that its investments are effectively subsidized by the Chinese government therefore creating an unfair advantage for CIC versus others seeking to compete for the same acquisition targets. The CIC paid its first interest on the bonds in February 2008 where it paid 12.9 billion yuan.[6]
In 2010, CIC established a new subsidiary, CIC International (Hong Kong) Co in Hong Kong and appointed Lawrence Lau as its Chairman.[7]
In 2011, CIC established its first foreign office in Toronto, choosing it over financial centres such as New York or London as its first office. Felix Chee will be the chief representative officer[8]
The management and board of the China Investment Corporation ultimately reports to the State Council of the People's Republic of China. The China Investment Corporation is seen as being "firmly entrenched" in the political establishment as the composition of its Board of Directors implies "considerable influence on the part of China’s Ministry of Finance."[9]
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Gao Xiqing is now vice chairman of the National Council for the Social Security Fund. Zhang Hongli and Li Yong are vice ministers of finance. Zhang Xiaoqiang and Wang Chunzheng are vice ministers of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the nation's top economic planner. Fu Ziying is assistant to the Minister of Commerce. Liu Shiyu is a central bank vice governor, Hu Xiaolian head of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange and Liu Zhongli was former finance minister.
Yang Qingwei is currently department head of fixed assets investment with the NDRC. Xie Ping is now the general manager of the Central Huijin Investment Corporation and Wang Jianxi a vice board chairman of the Central Huijin.
Hu Huaibang, Commissioner of Discipline Inspection with the China Banking Regulatory Commission, took the post as chief supervisor.
Lou Jiwei worked his way up, starting in the People's Liberation Army Navy and becoming the deputy minister of finance.
Xie Ping, "The Iron Fist" reorganized much of the Chinese banking system, and now firmly controls it.
Wang Jianxi holds a doctorate in accounting and lived in the United Kingdom and the United States and adopted the American first name 'Jesse'.
Previously, the Lou, Xie & Wang used $60 billion in currency reserves to clear all the bad loans from the books of the three largest state banks, allowing for stock market flotations in Hong Kong. These banks have rejoined the ranks of the world's leading financial institutions.
China has invested two-thirds of its reserves in US dollars, mostly US treasury bonds and agency bonds. The devaluation of the US$ on world currency markets has provided poor returns, prompting the Chinese to create the CIC to manage China's investment in equities.
Credit Suisse predicted CIC would only take a 5-10 per cent stake in each company, remaining a passive investor to avoid political hassles in overseas markets.[10] CIC bought a $3 billion stake in Blackstone, one of the largest US private equity firms. CIC has refrained from influencing Blackstone's investment strategy. The company will mainly pursue combined investments in overseas financial markets.
CIC is thought to engage in building influence for the government by buying up significant stakes in companies that have influence in western governments including airline companies as also target firms that have heavily invested in China. The investments would help the government to influence the policies of multinational companies and to protect China's interests in international spheres.
Market watchdogs want to know what would happen if China, Russia and Arab countries were to systematically acquire significant holdings in sensitive industries such as telecommunications, energy and defense.
The new fund has been placed under the authority of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao.
Lou has been assigned the rank of a minister. During daily operations, he will answer to a host of other agencies, including the powerful National Development and Reform Commission, a successor to the former influential State Planning Commission. Lou said CIC will operate on the principle of "commercial operation", and will abide by local laws of countries where it invests.
The state media had earlier speculated that the company will invest $67bn to buy the assets of Central Huijin, the investment arm of the central bank which holds shares in most state-run banks. It was later reported that Huijin was acquired by CIC from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange for $200 billion.[11]
China's leadership has debated the right strategy for the government investment fund. Vice Premier Zeng Peiyan has suggested that China should invest in natural resources to increase its strategic reserves. Other high-ranking party officials would rather see the country acquire shares in high-tech companies to help China more rapidly close the gap with leading industrialized nations.
Three years ago, dealers working for China Aviation Oil in Singapore, China's sole supplier of aviation fuel, suffered losses of $500 million from miscalculations and rising oil prices.
CIC bought a US $3 billion stake of Blackstone Group in June[12] and a 9.9 per cent stake of Morgan Stanley worth US$ 5 billion on December 19, 2007.[4][13][14]
The Chinese Internet community regularly vents its anger over government losses of the people's money, and there is widespread skepticism among Chinese party leaders and the public over the extent to which the country should get involved in global equities investments. Western investment banks Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley will provide expert knowledge to China's state-sponsored venture capitalists.
On March 2, 2009, Chinese media reported that the CIC was shifting its investment strategy to focus more on real estate, resources, and other areas more tied to the "real economy".[15]