Greece and UAE’s Mubadala Investment Co sign agreement for 400-mln-euro fund

The Greek economy and development ministry’s New Economy Development Fund (Taneo) and the United Arab Emirates’ “Mubadala Investment Co” on Wednesday signed an agreement for the creation of 400-million-euro fund for investment in Greece.

Under the terms of a Memorandum of Understanding signed by the two sides, Tanoe and Mubadala will each contribute 200 million euros to the co-investment platform being set up, which will seek investment opportunities in robust enterprises with growth potential in key areas of the Greek economy. The two sides will also share their expertise and further strengthen diplomatic and trade relations between Greece and UAE.

The MoU was signed, on the Greek side, by Taneo President and CEO Antonis Georgakakis, with the head of the prime minister’s financial office Giorgos Tsipras in attendance.

According to Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA) sources, the MoU will be jointly managed by Mubadala and TANEO and is ready to start operating at once, offering medium-sized Greek companies access to foreign capital. Currently, in spite of the very good relations with UAE, there are very few UAE investments in Greece.

The formation of joint funds with state agencies is a customary method for initial Emirates investments in other countries, via Mubadala, and was also employed in France. If the investments of the Greek-Emirates fund generate satisfactory returns, this is expected to encourage greater Arab investment in Greece.

According to sources, government Vice-President Yiannis Dragasakis and Giorgos Tsipras played key roles in the discussions leading up to the signature of the agreement.

“The Greek economy has demonstrated its resilience in recent years and many sectors are now demonstrating robust growth,” said Khaldoon Al Mubarak, chief executive of Mubadala. “As a global long-term strategic investor and partner, Mubadala’s focus is on finding opportunities across different markets which offer compelling investment prospects and the opportunity to generate strong and consistent returns.”