According to Reuters, Templeton's Mark Mobius is in talks to set up private equity investments in Iraq:
"We are looking at private equity in Iraq and are meeting with representatives in Iraq. There are smaller companies in manufacturing, the services and food industries that are keen for investment," Mobius told Reuters over the telephone from Hong Kong.
Brave man. I wonder if Iraq qualifies as a "frontier market" -- or does this constitute a whole new category of investment beyond that? ;-)
Another bit:
Few institutional investors have managed to overcome
concerns over Iraq's security situation despite the promise of
its oil and gas resources. One of the few exceptions is
Luxembourg-based Godvig Capital Management, whose hedge fund
Babylon Fund is focused on Iraq.
No mention in the linked story of the Babylon Fund's performance. Or how long it has been around.
I've seen the Babylon fund mentioned elsewhere:
http://www.portfolio.com/views/blogs/daily-brief/2007/09/07/a-winning-strategy-in-iraq
up 13% through august of 2007.
Posted by: tariq | April 21, 2008 at 09:59 PM
Tariq: Thanks for the link. Much appreciated!
Posted by: John | April 21, 2008 at 11:05 PM