In capitals across Asia, the Middle East, and beyond, a quiet but consequential shift is underway. Governments are no longer relying solely on markets to secure their economic futures. Instead, they are building and deploying sovereign wealth funds at an unprecedented pace—transforming state capital into a primary instrument of geopolitical
The world’s most influential investors are no longer confined to Wall Street or the City of London. Increasingly, they are headquartered in Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, and Doha—where sovereign wealth funds, fueled by decades of oil revenues, are rewriting the rules of global finance. Collectively managing between $4 trillion and $5
The world’s most important economic arteries are narrowing—and fast. At the center is the escalating conflict between the United States and Iran, where President Donald Trump has embraced a strategy that goes far beyond conventional warfare. It is a strategy built on choke points, strategic geographic and economic bottlenecks that
For years, governments and financial institutions have pledged to protect nature, halt biodiversity loss, and build resilience in the face of climate change. Yet a new global assessment makes clear that the world’s financial system continues to move in the opposite direction. According to insights from the State of Finance
The world’s digital backbone is expanding at a pace unmatched in modern history. More than a trillion semiconductors now enter the global market each year, feeding 11,000+ data centres and the accelerating adoption of AI. Yet beneath this surge lies a structural vulnerability: the technology sector’s dependence on land, water,
The 2025 IMF Annual Meetings in Washington ended with a stark message: the global economy’s resilience is wearing thin. Behind the handshakes and optimism of finance ministers and central bankers, the International Monetary Fund’s latest World Economic Outlook delivered a sobering verdict—growth is slowing, debt is mounting, and the fragile
