Insights · October 2026
Sovereign wealth funds passed $15 trillion in assets for the first time in December 2025. The largest funds set the direction, but a second tier of younger, development-focused funds is where new mandates are being written now.
Norway's NBIM leads at $2.28 trillion, with two Chinese vehicles behind it. Five of the top 10 are Gulf funds. Together the ten hold about $11.6 trillion, roughly three-quarters of all sovereign wealth.
Just outside the top 10: Temasek ($401bn) and Mubadala ($385bn). Mubadala was the single biggest sovereign dealmaker of 2025, at $33.7bn across 40 transactions.
These five sit well below the top 10 (apart from Danantara and L'IMAD on raw size), but each has a fresh mandate, new capital and a team still being built.
DanantaraIndonesia · Est. 2025
~$900bn–1tn
Consolidated SOE assets
Holds the state's stakes in its largest SOEs, including the big banks. In March 2026 it was set a 10–15% annual return target and a minimum 5% yearly payout to the state. It issued $1.5bn of bonds in June, and in July took control of four state asset managers with about $9.5bn of AUM, which it's merging into Indonesia's largest local manager.
L'IMAD HoldingsUAE (Abu Dhabi) · Est. 2026
~$300bn
Estimated assets
Abu Dhabi's fourth sovereign vehicle, alongside ADIA, Mubadala and ADQ, set up in January 2026. It takes combined Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth past $1.7 trillion. Mandate and team are still taking shape.
BaiterekKazakhstan · Est. 2013
~$30.5bn
Portfolio (KZT 14.3tn)
A development-finance holding (housing, SMEs, agriculture, export credit) being recast as a national investment holding, with seven investment boards and KZT 1tn a year of fresh state capital to 2029. Its fund-of-funds arm is Qazaqstan Investment Corporation.
NSIANigeria · Est. 2011
$3.4bn
Total assets, 2025
Small by Gulf standards but well run: 13 straight years of earnings growth, ROE up to 10.3% and a cost-to-income ratio under 5%. It co-invests in healthcare, renewables and real estate, and launched a $50m impact fund with JICA.
UzNIFUzbekistan · Est. 2024
$2.44bn
Net asset value
Holds 25–40% minority stakes in 13 state companies across transport, energy, utilities and telecoms, with Franklin Templeton as trustee. Its May 2026 listing in London and Tashkent raised over $600m from cornerstones including BlackRock and Franklin Templeton. Six portfolio companies are slated for their own IPOs by 2028.
The top 10 decide where most sovereign money goes, but they've largely finished building. The up-and-comers are still building, and two patterns repeat across them.
Sources and caveats: Global SWF ranking, September 2026; Danantara press release on asset-manager acquisitions, July 2026; Trend.az and Interfax on Baiterek; NSIA 2025 audited results; Kun.uz on UzNIF NAV, listing and cornerstone investors. AUM for SAFE, ADIA, GIC and KIA are estimates, and rankings differ across Global SWF, SWFI and others. Danantara's figure is consolidated SOE assets, not investable AUM. Currency conversions use the rate quoted in each source.