A Political Economy of Sovereign Wealth Funds in the Middle East and Asia

This book on sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) in the Middle East and Asia brings together leading scholars and practitioners focusing on investment trends in two prominent and influential regions of the globe. The resulting political economy mapping of these investment vehicles breaks new ground in elucidating prominent geographic contours of the global SWF sector. The interregional framing likewise reveals the strategic economic significance of SWF-facilitated linkages between the Middle East and Asia. The work probes three cross-cutting themes. The initial chapters explore the dynamics of competition and collaboration amongst Middle Eastern and Asian SWFs. This book then turns to the energy, environmental, and sustainability issues shaping SWF investment behavior. Finally, country-specific chapters examine how and why SWF investments materialize within key markets. These interregional connections enabled by sovereign wealth represent an expanding economic frontier with long-term implications for the Middle East, Asia, and the global economy.

List of contents

Chapter 1: Setting the Sovereign Wealth Fund Scene in the Middle East and Asia.- Chapter 2: Competitors or Peers? Analysis of Asian and Gulf SWFs as Global Investors.- Chapter 3: Assessing the Co-investment Strategies of Asian and GCC Funds.- Chapter 4: How Gulf Sovereign Wealth Funds are Preparing for the Energy Transition.- Chapter 5: Renewable Energy Transitions, SWFs, and Gulf-China Investment Relations: The Grey/Brown Ties that Bind.- Chapter 6: India Rising: How Sovereign Capital is Supporting the Next Economic Superpower.- Chapter 7: Omani Sovereign Wealth and Asia: Partnerships with Room to Grow.- Chapter 8: Connecting Sovereign Dots on the Investment Horizon.

About the author

Dr. Robert Mogielnicki is Senior Resident Scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute, Adjunct Assistant Professor at Georgetown University, and Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations, USA. 

Additional text

“Full of new information and uncommon insights, this volume is richly rewarding. There has been a good deal of ink spilled about Asian ties with the Middle East, but there is no better source than this book to understand the important role that huge sovereign wealth funds play in those ties.” (Dr. Jon B. Alterman, Senior Vice President, Brzezinski Chair in Global Security and Geostrategy and Director, Middle East Program, Center for Strategic and International Studies)

“The expansion of relations between Asia and the Gulf is one of the great geopolitical stories of our time, and sovereign wealth funds drive many of the most interesting plot lines.  Mogielnicki has brought together a top-notch group of contributors to help us understand the financial influence of these funds and to explain their role in linking two dynamic regions.” (Dr. Jonathan Fulton, Associate Professor, Zayed University, Abu Dhabi, UAE)

“Sovereign wealth funds in the Middle East and Asia are both reflecting and shaping political economy realities in two vast and vibrant regions of the world. In this timely edited volume, experts specialized in the Gulf, the Middle East's most vibrant economic sub-region, and in various Asian countries highlight similarities and differences between sovereign wealth funds and discuss their investment strategies and global competitiveness. The outcome is a revealing analytical map of political economy developments in the two regions that is highly relevant for policy practitioners.” (Dr. Amr Hamzawy is the director of the Middle East Program of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, DC)

“The book provides a clear-headed look at the scene of SWFs in the Middle East and their relationship with peers in Asia. Mogielnicki puts his expertise and that of his colleagues toward an expert examination of the relationship–including modality–between Gulf SWFs and their Asian counterparts, going beyond the geopolitical discourse.” (Mohammed Baharoon, Director General of b'huth, the Dubai Public Policy Research Centre)

“Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs) have been significant economic institutions in the Gulf countries for many years. Their size, investment strategies, and investment universe have evolved over time. With the expansion of Gulf-Asia relations, SWFs have been used as important institutions to advance those ties. This book is a unique series of essays, each of which explore the role of SWFs in the broader context of the Gulf-Asia relationships. It is a timely contribution to the existing knowledge of academics and practitioners.” (Dr. Sara Bazoobandi, Marie Curie Fellow, German Institute for Global and Area Studies)

“This edited volume provides fresh insights into the political economy of sovereign wealth funds (SWFs), focusing on the growing economic interdependence between the Middle East and Asia. By examining the strategic intentions and market dynamics driving SWF activity in these regions, it fills a critical gap in the literature on their expanding influence in the global economy.” (Dr. John Calabrese, Assistant Professor at American University and non-resident Senior Fellow at the Middle East Institute)

Report

Full of new information and uncommon insights, this volume is richly rewarding. There has been a good deal of ink spilled about Asian ties with the Middle East, but there is no better source than this book to understand the important role that huge sovereign wealth funds play in those ties. (Dr. Jon B. Alterman, Senior Vice President, Brzezinski Chair in Global Security and Geostrategy and Director, Middle East Program, Center for Strategic and International Studies)

The expansion of relations between Asia and the Gulf is one of the great geopolitical stories of our time, and sovereign wealth funds drive many of the most interesting plot lines.  Mogielnicki has brought together a top-notch group of contributors to help us understand the financial influence of these funds and to explain their role in linking two dynamic regions. (Dr. Jonathan Fulton, Associate Professor, Zayed University, Abu Dhabi, UAE)

Sovereign wealth funds in the Middle East and Asia are both reflecting and shaping political economy realities in two vast and vibrant regions of the world. In this timely edited volume, experts specialized in the Gulf, the Middle East's most vibrant economic sub-region, and in various Asian countries highlight similarities and differences between sovereign wealth funds and discuss their investment strategies and global competitiveness. The outcome is a revealing analytical map of political economy developments in the two regions that is highly relevant for policy practitioners. (Dr. Amr Hamzawy is the director of the Middle East Program of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, DC)

The book provides a clear-headed look at the scene of SWFs in the Middle East and their relationship with peers in Asia. Mogielnicki puts his expertise and that of his colleagues toward an expert examination of the relationship including modality between Gulf SWFs and their Asian counterparts, going beyond the geopolitical discourse. (Mohammed Baharoon, Director General of b'huth, the Dubai Public Policy Research Centre)

Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs) have been significant economic institutions in the Gulf countries for many years. Their size, investment strategies, and investment universe have evolved over time. With the expansion of Gulf-Asia relations, SWFs have been used as important institutions to advance those ties. This book is a unique series of essays, each of which explore the role of SWFs in the broader context of the Gulf-Asia relationships. It is a timely contribution to the existing knowledge of academics and practitioners. (Dr. Sara Bazoobandi, Marie Curie Fellow, German Institute for Global and Area Studies)

This edited volume provides fresh insights into the political economy of sovereign wealth funds (SWFs), focusing on the growing economic interdependence between the Middle East and Asia. By examining the strategic intentions and market dynamics driving SWF activity in these regions, it fills a critical gap in the literature on their expanding influence in the global economy. (Dr. John Calabrese, Assistant Professor at American University and non-resident Senior Fellow at the Middle East Institute)

Product details

• Assisted by: Robert Mogielnicki (Editor)
• Publisher: Springer, Berlin
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Release: 11.06.2025
• EAN: 9783031852596
• ISBN: 978-3-0-3185259-6
• No. of pages: 124
• Illustrations: XIV, 124 p. 18 illus.
• Series: International Political Economy Series
• Subjects: Social sciences, law, business > Political science > Political system; Internationale Beziehungen, China, Naher Osten, Wirtschaftspolitik, politische Ökonomie, Investment, Finance, Middle East, auseinandersetzen, Middle Eastern Politics, International Political Economy’, Gulf, Sovereign Wealth Funds