Canada's Carney launches a sovereign wealth fund. What is it?

Canada's Carney launches a sovereign wealth fund. What is it?17 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleNadine YousifSenior Canada reporterAFP via Getty ImagesCanada is launching a government-owned investment fund to pay for major development projects in the country, Prime Minister Mark Carney has announced. The Canada Strong Fund, a first for the country, will invest in energy, infrastructure, mining, agriculture and technology, with an initial contribution of C$25bn ($18.4bn; £13.5bn).The fund will also allow Canadians who have "a bit of extra money" to invest into it directly, but experts have warned it risks "limited returns".The move is part of a broader goal by the Carney government to boost Canada's economy in face of US tariff threats.At Monday's announcement in Ottawa, Carney said the fund will invest - along with the private sector - into what his government has described as "nation-building projects" like port upgrades and natural resource development."Many countries that are blessed with natural resources like Norway have sovereign wealth funds. Canada hasn't had one, until now," the prime minister said.The Montreal Economic Institute warned in a statement on Monday that the fund "risks costing taxpayers dearly while generating limited returns". The Carney government has said it will hold consultations over the coming months on the details of the fund. How sovereign wealth funds work elsewhereCarney on Monday credited other countries for having "the foresight many decades ago" to launch their own sovereign wealth funds. Among them is Norway, which launched a fund in 1990 that invests the surplus revenues of its oil and gas sector exclusively outside the country. That fund has grown to $2.1tn in assets, according to a 2025 Bloomberg report, becoming "the largest of its kind". Like Norway, Canada sits on a rich bed of natural resources, including the third-large...