The trio of Goldman Sachs, Credit Suisse and UBS has been selected by the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) have been appointed as assets managers for its Stabilisation Fund.
According to a statement from the NSIA, Mr. Uche Orji, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Authority, was quoted as stating that “UBS was selected to manage the US Treasury Bond portfolio and that Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse were selected to manage the investment grade US corporate bond portfolio.”
The initial Benchmark is a blend of 25 per cent Barclays 1-3 year US Treasury Bonds and 75 per cent Barclays 1-3 year US Corporate Bond Index.
The statement added that the Stabilisation Fund is intended to act as a buffer against short-term macro- economic instability. As such, “the Fund’s assets will be invested conservatively, with capital preservation in nominal terms being of primary importance.”
Given the short- term nature of the Fund’s potential liabilities, the Fund, the NSIA said, is restricted to investing in investment grade sovereign and corporate fixed income assets.
Orji said the selection of the three foreign banks, two of which are Swiss and the other American, “follows a comprehensive process of review and evaluation of world class candidates for this mandate”.
The appointment of three leading global investment banks he added was to assist with the management of the Stabilization Fund – “drawing on the particular expertise of each to match our investment management requirements.”
The three investment banks he said “will help us achieve the economic policy objectives set for NSIA and attain the highest standards of financial stewardship to which NSIA aspires.”