Mubadala to commit €1bn to French state fund

Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund (SWF) is set to invest €1 billion ($1.08 billion) in a French state-backed fund dedicated to providing capital for French companies facing activist investor campaigns.

France’s finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, on a visit to the UAE, announced that Mubadala will be the first SWF to invest in the LAC I Fund.

The investment vehicle which will be managed by France’s state fund Bpifrance. Le Maire said that the €1 billion investment “sends a strong signal”, adding that Bpifrance will match Mubadala’s investment.

The LAC I Fund has been set up by the French government to provide funding for French companies facing campaigns from activist investors.

The fund is set to launch in March with an initial €4 billion made up from additional capital commitments from institutional investors.

Over time, Bpifrance aims to raise up to €10 billion for the fund and will deploy its capital on roughly 15 companies with an investment horizon of 10 years.

Mubadala’s deputy group chief executive Waleed Al Mokarrab said that the firm has “a strong track record of performance in France” and continues to see “significant investment opportunities in the market”.

In November 2017 Mubadala and Bpifrance teamed up to launch a €1 billion investment platform targetting French private companies.

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