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Canada’s new sovereign wealth fund gets $25B as Carney unveils plans

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Canada is getting its first sovereign wealth fund, Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Monday, with an initial endowment of $25 billion.

A sovereign wealth fund is a state-owned investment fund, that allows a government to invest in projects and investment opportunities across the world.

Carney described it as “essentially a national savings and investment account.”

Several countries around the world, from China and Norway to Australia and Saudi Arabia, have similar state-owned investment funds.

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The Canada Strong Fund will “invest alongside the private sector in nation-building projects,” Carney said.

“We will begin with an initial endowment of $25 billion. Over time, the fund will grow through asset recycling and reinvestment, creating even greater opportunities for future generations,” he said.

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Individual Canadians will be able to directly invest in the fund

“If you have a little bit of extra money, we’ll make it easy for you to invest in the fund to help build Canada strong, for all,” he added.

Most of the major investment in big projects in Canada will still come from the private sector, he said, with the federal government providing support through loans, grants and other incentives.

The fund will be “professionally managed and operate as an arms-length, independent Crown corporation,” he said, adding that the government will be consulting over “specific aspects” of the fund.

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