Qatar and Russia set up $2bn investment fund

• Sovereign funds sign deal
• Both to put in $1bn
• Countries worked together in 2014

The sovereign funds of Qatar and Russia have created a $2 billion joint fund to invest in technology, minerals and healthcare projects.

Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) and the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) will each invest $1 billion, a statement from the RDIF said.

In 2014 the two wealth funds launched a $4 billion joint venture. This has invested in financial and banking services, artificial intelligence, metals and mining, and logistics and transport in Russia.

The new agreement was signed in the presence of Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Qatar’s Emir Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani.

“There is significant potential for cooperation between our sovereign funds,” RDIF chief executive Kirill Dmitriev said.

The deal will open new opportunities for Russian companies in the Middle East and support Qatari businesses in entering the Russian market, he said.

Bilateral trade increased by 262 percent during 2023-2024, a local Qatari news outlet reported, quoting commerce and industry minister Sheikh Faisal Bin Faisal Al Thani.

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This month QIA and Indonesian sovereign wealth fund Danantara Indonesia set up a joint fund worth $4 billion to invest in so-called domestic priority sectors in the southeast Asian country.

QIA said in February that it was evaluating eight venture capital firms to add to its “fund of funds” venture capital programme, which has already invested nearly $500 million in six companies.