{"id":4023,"date":"2008-10-01T01:00:00","date_gmt":"2008-10-01T01:00:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2015-01-27T12:36:09","modified_gmt":"2015-01-27T12:36:09","slug":"los-principios-de-santiago","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/amchamchile.cl\/en\/noticia\/los-principios-de-santiago\/","title":{"rendered":"<!--:es-->Los Principios de Santiago<!--:--><!--:en-->Sovereign Wealth Funds: The Santiago Principles<!--:-->"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><!--:es--><!--break--><\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">A medida que el mundo parec\u00eda caer en una debacle financiera a fines de septiembre, Chile ten\u00eda una raz\u00f3n para agradecer. Durante los dos a\u00f1os previos, hab\u00eda ahorrado US$ 20.000 millones en excedentes extraordinarios del cobre, precisamente como protecci\u00f3n contra los malos tiempos.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Si bien representan cerca del 10% del PIB anual de Chile, sus fondos de ahorro suenan como una gota de agua en el mar al lado del plan de rescate de US$ 700.000 millones propuesto por el Gobierno de Estados Unidos. Pero este es s\u00f3lo uno de una nueva generaci\u00f3n de fondos internacionales -los denominados fondos soberanos de inversi\u00f3n- que en conjunto suman cerca de US$ 3 billones y que, al menos en la primera etapa de la crisis de hipotecas de alto riesgo o subprime, desempe\u00f1aron un rol clave en apuntalar con nuevo capital a las alica\u00eddas instituciones financieras.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Los fondos soberanos, de hecho, no son nada nuevo. Kuwait ha tenido uno desde mediados de los a\u00f1os 50, y Abu Dhabi y Singapur crearon los suyos en la d\u00e9cada de los 70.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Sin embargo, un estimado de dos tercios de los m\u00e1s de 40 fondos soberanos de inversi\u00f3n (FSI) que existen en la actualidad se cre\u00f3 durante la \u00faltima d\u00e9cada. Y, m\u00e1s recientemente, sus activos han proliferado gracias a los precios r\u00e9cord de los bienes b\u00e1sicos.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Pertenecientes mayoritariamente a pa\u00edses emergentes, son -en cierta forma- una tendencia bienvenida, sostiene Brad W. Setser, asociado de geoeconom\u00eda del Council on Foreign Relations, entidad con sede en Nueva York. \u201cSignifican un aumento en la riqueza de los que alguna vez fueran pa\u00edses pobres y eso es bueno para sus est\u00e1ndares de vida\u201d.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">En el caso de Chile, el ministro de Hacienda, Andr\u00e9s Velasco, tambi\u00e9n ha manifestado que sus ahorros son un premio a la virtud fiscal, no s\u00f3lo el resultado de los recientes precios r\u00e9cord del cobre, la principal exportaci\u00f3n del pa\u00eds. Chile, destaca, ha registrado un super\u00e1vit fiscal en 13 de los \u00faltimos 16 a\u00f1os.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Pero, en parte porque el aumento mundial de los fondos soberanos de inversi\u00f3n representa una transferencia masiva de riqueza hacia mercados emergentes, ha generado cierta molestia. Esos super\u00e1vits, despu\u00e9s de todo, son la imagen espejo de d\u00e9ficits en otros pa\u00edses como Estados Unidos.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Dado que los FSI han asumido participaciones en empresas estadounidenses, incluidos \u00edconos financieros como Morgan Stanley \u2013donde el FSI de China es socio- han recibidos las cr\u00edticas de los pol\u00edticos. Y Estados Unidos no est\u00e1 solo en su preocupaci\u00f3n; Alemania recientemente aprob\u00f3 un proyecto que podr\u00eda restringir las adquisiciones de participaciones significativas en sus empresas por parte de los FSI.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Los FSI son un s\u00edntoma de un cambio m\u00e1s amplio en la econom\u00eda mundial, afirma Setser. Son un reflejo de pol\u00edticas -como el manejo de China de su tasa de cambio- que han contribuido a un desequilibrio que, a su vez, es una de las ra\u00edces de la actual agitaci\u00f3n financiera, comenta.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Su visi\u00f3n de los FSI como una se\u00f1al de un importante cambio en la econom\u00eda mundial es compartida por Gerard Lyons, economista jefe en Londres de Standard Chartered Bank. \u201cSon un reflejo de c\u00f3mo el poder econ\u00f3mico y financiero est\u00e1 cambiando desde Occidente hacia Oriente\u201d.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Pero ese no es el problema, se\u00f1ala. \u201cEl real problema no es que ellos sean extranjeros, sino que sean controlados por Gobiernos\u201d, indica.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">En ese sentido, a\u00f1ade, representan potencialmente un cambio en las reglas tanto del juego financiero como de poder. \u201cVemos c\u00f3mo los Gobiernos se involucran, directa e indirectamente, en su gesti\u00f3n\u2026 los criterios comerciales y el fin de lucro podr\u00edan no ser la \u00fanica fuerza que conduzca su estrategia de inversi\u00f3n\u201d. <SPAN style=\"FONT-SIZE: small\"><STRONG><\/STRONG><\/SPAN><\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\"><SPAN style=\"FONT-SIZE: small\"><STRONG>Un Amplio Surtido<\/STRONG><\/SPAN><\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Los FSI pueden encontrarse a trav\u00e9s de todas las regiones del mundo y en todas las formas y tama\u00f1os, desde el peque\u00f1o fondo que cre\u00f3 Vietnam en el 2006 hasta los enormes fondos petroleros de los Emiratos \u00c1rabes Unidos y Noruega. Antes de la reciente ca\u00edda de los precios del petr\u00f3leo, este \u00faltimo fondo -que ahora est\u00e1 avaluado en unos US$ 400.000 millones- acumulaba activos a una incre\u00edble tasa de US$ 2.000 millones por semana, informa Martin Skancke, director general del Departamento de Gesti\u00f3n de Activos del Ministerio de Finanzas de Noruega.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">No obstante, no es su \u00fanica diferencia. Tambi\u00e9n tienen prop\u00f3sitos muy distintos y el nombre \u201cFSI\u201d se usa, de hecho, para referirse a por lo menos cuatro tipos diferentes de fondos.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Los fondos de estabilizaci\u00f3n, como el Fondo de Estabilizaci\u00f3n Econ\u00f3mica y Social (FEES) de Chile, son el tipo m\u00e1s com\u00fan. Est\u00e1n dise\u00f1ados para allanar los cambios c\u00edclicos de una econom\u00eda y, en muchos casos, para evitar la apreciaci\u00f3n de la moneda de cara a los precios extraordinarios de un bien b\u00e1sico y su impacto negativo como \u201cenfermedad holandesa\u201d sobre otras industrias de exportaci\u00f3n.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Otros, -los denominados fondos para las futuras generaciones- asumen una visi\u00f3n de m\u00e1s largo plazo y buscan acumular ahorros en contra del agotamiento de recursos naturales. Ese es el prop\u00f3sito subyacente del Fondo del Petr\u00f3leo de Noruega.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Los ingresos obtenidos a partir de recursos naturales implican una responsabilidad ante las futuras generaciones, destaca Skancke. \u201cNo puedes vivir indefinidamente vendiendo tus activos\u201d<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Noruega maneja su fondo sobre la base de una \u201cregla del 4%\u201c, el retorno promedio real anual del 4% que \u2013supone- ser\u00e1 su rendimiento de largo plazo. Esta es la cantidad que se permite gastar cada a\u00f1o sobre sus ingresos no petroleros, incrementando as\u00ed el gasto fiscal gradualmente a medida que el fondo crece mientras busca tambi\u00e9n garantizar su perpetuidad.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Luego, est\u00e1n los FSI que est\u00e1n dise\u00f1ados para cubrir futuros pasivos de pensiones -Chile tambi\u00e9n tiene uno de esos, su Fondo de Reserva de Pensiones de US$ 2.400 millones- y, en una tendencia m\u00e1s reciente, los denominados fondos de desarrollo nacional.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Estos \u00faltimos a menudo est\u00e1n destinados a inversi\u00f3n en infraestructura p\u00fablica para aumentar la competitividad de una econom\u00eda o la calidad de la vida de sus ciudadanos, pero tambi\u00e9n pueden tener otros fines parecidos. Chile, por ejemplo, anunci\u00f3 la creaci\u00f3n de un Fondo Bicentenario de Capital Humano de US$ 6.000 millones, usando capital del FEES, con los intereses del cual financiar\u00e1 un nuevo programa de becas internacionales para estudiantes chilenos.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">No hay dudas de que los FSI tienen muchas ventajas. Adem\u00e1s de servir como una defensa en contra de las t\u00edpicas trampas de un auge de los bienes b\u00e1sicos -el sobrecalentamiento y la enfermedad holandesa, o un raudal de programas sociales o inversiones de bajo rendimiento- pueden ofrecer un rendimiento mucho m\u00e1s atractivo que las reservas internacionales en su forma tradicional.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Noruega, que comenz\u00f3 a cimentar su fondo petrolero a mediados de la d\u00e9cada de los 90, es ampliamente reconocida como el modelo mundial de gesti\u00f3n de FSI. Seg\u00fan el ministro Velasco, es a donde mira Chile \u2013el pionero y modelo de FSI en Am\u00e9rica Latina- cuando no est\u00e1 seguro de c\u00f3mo proceder.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Pero un FSI no es la panacea, advierte Skancke. Para comenzar, hacen que los ahorros de una naci\u00f3n sean muy visibles de modo que \u2013como ha experimentado el Gobierno chileno- pueden utilizarse f\u00e1cilmente como arma contra un Gobierno por su supuesto gasto demasiado ajustado.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Tambi\u00e9n es necesario que se administren de manera apropiada. \u201cUn fondo administrado de manera deficiente puede hacer m\u00e1s da\u00f1o que bien\u201d, asevera Skancke.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Su gesti\u00f3n exige capacidades profesionales que son distintas a las que usualmente se encuentran en un Ministerio de Finanzas, a\u00f1ade. Y se requiere un cierto nivel de conceso multipartidario si un FSI no ha de hacer cambios perjudiciales a la estrategia de inversi\u00f3n s\u00f3lo porque ha habido un cambio de Gobierno.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\"><SPAN style=\"FONT-SIZE: small\"><STRONG>Aceptaci\u00f3n Internacional <\/STRONG><\/SPAN><\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Pero el creciente n\u00famero de FSI a nivel mundial enfrenta no s\u00f3lo el desaf\u00edo de ganar aceptaci\u00f3n de pol\u00edticos y electores en casa. Tambi\u00e9n necesitan la aceptaci\u00f3n de los pa\u00edses que reciben sus inversiones.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Es importante que los pa\u00edses receptores est\u00e9n c\u00f3modos con las inversiones de los FSI, dice Lyons de Standard Chartered, quien ha entregado su testimonio sobre el tema ante comit\u00e9s del Congreso de Estados Unidos. \u201cLos FSI no s\u00f3lo necesitan hacer lo correcto, sino que tienen que ser vistos haciendo lo correcto\u201d.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Ah\u00ed es donde entran los llamados Principios de Santiago. Analizados en una cumbre del Grupo Internacional de Trabajo sobre Fondos Soberanos de Inversi\u00f3n en la capital de Chile a comienzos de septiembre, est\u00e1n dise\u00f1ados para servir como un c\u00f3digo de conducta voluntario para los FSI de los 26 pa\u00edses representados en la reuni\u00f3n.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Los detalles de estos Principios y Pr\u00e1cticas Generalmente Aceptados para los Fondos Soberanos de Inversi\u00f3n (PPGA) no se revelaron, a la espera de su presentaci\u00f3n ante el Comit\u00e9 Monetario y Financiero Internacional del FMI el 11 de octubre. Sin embargo, el c\u00f3digo de 24 puntos es conocido por cubrir \u00e1reas que van desde pr\u00e1cticas de inversi\u00f3n a disposiciones de sobre gobierno y divulgaci\u00f3n de informaci\u00f3n.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">\u201cLos principios de Santiago aumentar\u00e1n la legitimidad de los FSI y les dar\u00e1n m\u00e1s oportunidades para crecer\u201d, predijo el ministro Velasco en un seminario posterior a la cumbre. John Lipsky, primer subdirector gerente del Fondo Monetario Internacional, tambi\u00e9n se mostr\u00f3 optimista sobre su impacto.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">\u201cAl adoptar los principios y pr\u00e1cticas PPGA, los FSI podr\u00e1n reducir los temores y as\u00ed mitigar el riesgo de presiones proteccionistas sobre sus inversiones y restricciones sobre los flujos de capital internacional\u201d, indic\u00f3. \u201cEs importante evitar las percepciones negativas o correr el riesgo de una repercusi\u00f3n proteccionista&#8221;.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Pero otros no est\u00e1n tan convencidos, en parte porque la adopci\u00f3n de los principios ser\u00e1 voluntaria. \u201cSiempre he defendido un c\u00f3digo de conducta\u2026 pero la aplicaci\u00f3n es la gran brecha, si bien probablemente nunca fue realista esperar eso a estas alturas\u201d, se\u00f1ala Lyons.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Que se entregue m\u00e1s informaci\u00f3n sobre los FSI es vital, agrega Brad Setser. \u201cRecibo m\u00e1s informaci\u00f3n sobre el fondo de Abu Dhabi Investment Authority en un art\u00edculo de BusinessWeek que a trav\u00e9s de sus informes en su sitio web\u201d, destaca.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">No obstante, a\u00fan cuando un FSI sea transparente, puede no ser el centro de la preocupaci\u00f3n. El FSI de Rusia es bastante transparente, se\u00f1ala Lyons, pero \u00bfqu\u00e9 ocurre con \u201cRussia Inc.\u201d y sus operaciones en el extranjero a trav\u00e9s de empresas estatales como Gasprom?<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">De igual forma, en el caso de China, no es su FSI, la China Investment Corporation, el objeto de cr\u00edticas como ocurre con muchos otros veh\u00edculos a trav\u00e9s de los cuales invierte en el extranjero tales como el China Development Bank.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Claramente, esos son temas que los Principios de Santiago no abordan, ni pueden pretender hacerlo. Pero son temas que no van a desaparecer.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">La reciente agitaci\u00f3n financiera ha aumentado la presi\u00f3n, particularmente en Europa, por una regulaci\u00f3n m\u00e1s estricta de muchos veh\u00edculos de inversi\u00f3n incluidos, por ejemplo, los fondos de cobertura y quiz\u00e1s cierto tipo de supervisi\u00f3n a escala mundial. En ese contexto, es improbable que los FSI se escapen del creciente escrutinio.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">Ante la reuni\u00f3n de septiembre en Santiago, Lipsky del FMI destac\u00f3 que los activos bajo administraci\u00f3n de los FSI ya superan los de los fondos de cobertura. Y, predijo, que podr\u00edan llegar hasta los US$ 11.000 billones en el 2013, o no muy por debajo del actual tama\u00f1o de la econom\u00eda de Estados Unidos.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\">En la actual crisis, sus inversiones, por cierto, est\u00e1n perdiendo valor y una recesi\u00f3n junto con menores precios del petr\u00f3leo reducir\u00edan su crecimiento, pero, a\u00fan as\u00ed, los FSI parecen listos para seguir siendo un actor importante en los mercados mundiales de capital. Eso hace que la implementaci\u00f3n de los Principios de Santiago sea crucial como un primer paso en la direcci\u00f3n correcta para mantener la confianza en un mundo financiero cada vez m\u00e1s multipolar.<\/P><br \/>\n<P style=\"TEXT-ALIGN: justify\"><STRONG>Ruth Bradley<\/STRONG> es la editora general de <STRONG>bUSiness CHILE<\/STRONG>. Adem\u00e1s trabaja como corresponsal en Santiago de The Economist.<\/P><!--:--><!--:en--><br \/>\n<!--break--><br \/>\n<b><I>What are sovereign wealth funds and what principles should guide their management? Those were questions debated at a recent international summit in Santiago. <\/b><\/I>  <\/p>\n<p>As the world appeared to slide into financial disarray at the end of September, Chile had one cause for thankfulness. Over the previous two years, it had stashed away US$20 billion of copper windfall revenues, precisely as a cushion against tougher times. <\/p>\n<p>Although representing around 10% of Chile\u2019s annual GDP, its savings fund sounds like a drop in the ocean beside the US$ 700-billion bail-out plan proposed by the U.S. government. But it is only one of a new generation of international funds &#8211; the so-called sovereign wealth funds &#8211; that, together, add up to some US$ 3,000 billion and, at least in the early stages of the subprime crisis, played a key role in propping up ailing financial institutions with new capital.<\/p>\n<p>Sovereign wealth funds are, in fact, nothing new. Kuwait has had one since the mid-1950s, and Abu Dhabi and Singapore created theirs in the 1970s.<\/p>\n<p>But an estimated two-thirds of the 40-odd sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) that now exist were created over the past decade. And, more recently, their assets have mushroomed on the back of record commodity prices.  <\/p>\n<p>Mostly held by emerging countries, they are, in some ways, a welcome trend, says Brad W. Setser, fellow for geoeconomics at the New York-based Council on Foreign Relations. \u201cThey signify a rise in the wealth of once poor countries and that\u2019s good for their living standards.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In Chile\u2019s case, Finance Minister Andr\u00e9s Velasco has also argued that its nest egg is a reward for fiscal virtue, not just the result of recent record prices for copper, the country\u2019s main export. Chile has, he points out, run a fiscal surplus in 13 of the last 16 years. <\/p>\n<p>But, partly because the global rise of sovereign wealth funds represents a massive transfer of wealth to emerging markets, it has raised some hackles. Those surpluses are, after all, the mirror image of deficits in other countries like the United States.<\/p>\n<p>As SWFs have taken stakes in U.S. companies, including financial icons like Morgan Stanley &#8211; where China\u2019s SWF is a partner &#8211; they have come in for criticism from politicians. And the U.S. is not alone in its concern; Germany has recently passed a bill that could restrict acquisitions of significant stakes in its companies by SWFs. <\/p>\n<p>SWFs are a symptom of a broader change in the global economy, says Setser. They are, he argues, a reflection of policies, such as China\u2019s management of its exchange rate, that have contributed to an imbalance which is, in turn, one of the roots of the present financial turmoil. <\/p>\n<p>His view of SWFs as a sign of a major shift in the global economy is echoed by Gerard Lyons, the London-based chief economist of Standard Chartered Bank. \u201cThey\u2019re a reflection of how economic and financial power is shifting from West to East.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But that is not the problem, he says. \u201cThe real issue is not that they\u2019re foreign but that they\u2019re government-controlled,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n<p>In that sense, he adds, they potentially represent a shift in the rules of the financial game as well as in power. \u201cWe see how governments get involved, directly and indirectly, in their management\u2026 commercial criteria and the profit motive may not be the only force driving their investment strategy.\u201d <\/p>\n<p><font size= \u201c2\u201d> <b>A mixed bag<\/B><\/FONT><\/p>\n<p>SWFs can be found across all regions of the world and come in all shapes and sizes, from the small fund that Vietnam created in 2006 to the huge oil funds of the United Arab Emirates and Norway.  Before the recent drop in oil prices, this latter fund &#8211; now worth some US$400 billion &#8211; was accumulating assets at the amazing rate of US$2 billion a week, reported Martin Skancke, director general of the Norwegian Finance Ministry\u2019s Asset Management Department. <\/p>\n<p>But size is not their only difference. They also have very different purposes and the name \u2018SWF\u2019 is, in fact, used to refer to at least four different types of fund. <\/p>\n<p>Stabilization funds, like Chile\u2019s Economic and Social Stabilization Fund (FEES), are the most common type. They are designed to smooth out an economy\u2019s cyclical swings and, in many cases, to stem currency appreciation in the face of a commodity windfall and its negative \u2018Dutch disease\u2019 impact on other export industries. <\/p>\n<p>Others &#8211; the so-called future generation funds &#8211; take a longer view and seek to accumulate savings against the depletion of natural resources. That is the underlying purpose of Norway\u2019s Oil Fund. <\/p>\n<p>Income from natural resources implies a responsibility to future generations, points out Skancke. \u201cYou can\u2019t live indefinitely by selling the furniture.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Norway manages its fund on the basis of a \u20184% rule\u2019 &#8211; the 4% average annual real return that, it assumes, will be its long-term yield. This is the amount that it allows itself to spend each year on top of non-oil revenues, thereby increasing fiscal expenditure gradually as the fund grows while also seeking to ensure its perpetuity. <\/p>\n<p>Then, there are SWFs that are designed to cover future pension liabilities &#8211; Chile has one of those too, its US$ 2.4-billion Pension Reserve Fund &#8211; and, in a more recent trend &#8211; the so-called national development funds.<\/p>\n<p>These latter are often earmarked for investment in public infrastructure to increase an economy\u2019s competitiveness or the quality of life of its citizens, but can also have other similar ends. Chile has, for example, announced the creation of a US$6-billion Bicentenary Fund, using capital taken from the FEES, on which the interest will finance a new program of overseas scholarships for Chilean students.<\/p>\n<p>There is no doubt that SWFs have many advantages. As well as serving as a defense against the typical pitfalls of a commodity boom &#8211; overheating and Dutch disease or a plethora of low-return investment or social programs &#8211; they can offer a far more attractive return than international reserves in their traditional form.<\/p>\n<p>Norway, which started building its oil fund in the mid-1990s, is widely regarded as the world model of SWF management. According to Minister Velasco, it is where Chile &#8211; Latin America\u2019s SWF pioneer and model &#8211; looks to when it is unsure how to proceed.<\/p>\n<p>But a SWF is not a panacea, warns Skancke. To start with, they make a country\u2019s savings very visible so can &#8211; as the Chilean administration has found &#8211; easily be used as a stick with which to beat a government for its supposed tightfistedness. <\/p>\n<p>They also need to be properly managed. \u201cA poorly-managed fund can do more harm than good,\u201d states Skancke. <\/p>\n<p>Their management calls for professional skills that are different from those usually found in a Finance Ministry, he adds. And a certain level of cross-party consensus is necessary if a SWF is not to make damaging shifts in investment strategy just because there happens to have been a change of government. <\/p>\n<p><font size= \u201c2\u201d> <b>International acceptance<\/b><\/font><\/p>\n<p>But the world\u2019s growing number of SWFs face not only the challenge of gaining the acceptance of politicians and voters at home. They also need acceptance in the countries that receive their investments.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s important that recipient countries are comfortable with SWF investments, says Standard Chartered\u2019s Lyons, who has testified to U.S. Congressional Committees on the subject. \u201cSWFs need not only to do the right thing but to be seen to be doing it.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>That is where the so-called Santiago Principles come in. Thrashed out at a summit of the International Working Group of Sovereign Wealth Funds in Chile\u2019s capital at the beginning of September, they are designed to serve as a voluntary code of conduct for SWFs from the 26 countries represented at the meeting.  <\/p>\n<p>The details of these Generally Accepted Principles and Practices (GAPP) were not revealed, pending their presentation to the IMF\u2019s International Monetary and Financial Committee on October 11. However, the 24-point code is known to cover areas that range from investment practices to governance and accountability arrangements. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Santiago Principles will increase the legitimacy of SWFs and give them more opportunities to grow,\u201d predicted Minister Velasco at a post-summit seminar. John Lipsky, first deputy managing director at the IMF, was also optimistic about their impact.  <\/p>\n<p>\u201cBy embracing the GAPP&#8217;s principles and practices, SWFs could reduce concerns and thereby help mitigate the risk of protectionist pressures on their investments and restrictions on international capital flows,\u201d he said. \u201cIt is important to avoid negative perceptions or run the risk of protectionist backlash.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>But others are not so convinced, partly because adherence to the principles would be voluntary. \u201cI\u2019ve always advocated a code of conduct\u2026 but enforceability is the big gap, although it was probably never realistic to expect that at this stage,\u201d says Lyons.<\/p>\n<p>More disclosure by SWFs is vital, adds Brad Setser. \u201cI got more information about the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority from an article in BusinessWeek than it posts on its website,\u201d he notes. <\/p>\n<p>But, even when a SWF itself is transparent, it may not be the focus of concern. Russia\u2019s SWF is pretty transparent, says Lyons, but what about \u201cRussia Inc.\u201d and its operations abroad through state enterprises like Gasprom?<\/p>\n<p>Similarly, in the case of China, it\u2019s not its SWF, the China Investment Corporation, that is the target of criticism so much as other vehicles through which it invests abroad such as the China Development Bank. <\/p>\n<p>Clearly, those are issues that the Santiago Principles don\u2019t &#8211; and cannot hope &#8211; to address. But they are issues that aren\u2019t going to go away.<\/p>\n<p>In view of recent financial turmoil, pressure has mounted, particularly in Europe, for tighter regulation of many investment vehicles including, for example, hedge funds, and, perhaps, some sort of supervision on a global scale. In that context, SWFs are unlikely to escape growing scrutiny. <\/p>\n<p>Speaking at the September meeting in Santiago, the IMF\u2019s Lipsky pointed out that SWFs\u2019 assets under managements already exceed those of hedge funds. And, he predicted, they could reach as much as US$ 11,000 billion by 2013, or not so far short of the present size of the U.S. economy. <\/p>\n<p>In the present crisis, their investments are, of course, losing value and a recession and lower oil prices would slow their growth but, still, SWFs look set to remain a major player in global capital markets. That makes the implementation of the Santiago Principles crucial as a first step in the right direction of maintaining confidence in an increasingly multipolar financial world.  <\/p>\n<p><b>Ruth Bradley<\/b> is general editor of <b>bUSiness CHILE.<\/b> She is also the Santiago correspondent for The Economist.<!--:--><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><!--:es--><P><EM>&nbsp;<\/EM><\/P><br \/>\n<P>\u00bfQu\u00e9 son los fondos soberanos y qu\u00e9 principios debieran guiar su gesti\u00f3n? Esas fueron las preguntas debatidas en una reciente cumbre internacional en Santiago. Los fondos soberanos, de hecho, no son nada nuevo. Kuwait ha tenido uno desde mediados de los a\u00f1os 50. Abu Dhabi y Singapur crearon los suyos en la d\u00e9cada de los 70. <!--:--><!--:en-->What are sovereign wealth funds and what principles should guide their management? Those were questions debated at a recent international summit in Santiago. <\/p>\n<p>Sovereign wealth funds are, in fact, nothing new. Kuwait has had one since the mid-1950s, and Abu Dhabi and Singapore created theirs in the 1970s.<!--:--><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"template":"","news_tax":[],"user_type":[],"class_list":["post-4023","news","type-news","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Los Principios de SantiagoSovereign Wealth Funds: The Santiago Principles - AmCham Chile<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/amchamchile.cl\/noticia\/los-principios-de-santiago\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Los Principios de SantiagoSovereign Wealth Funds: The Santiago Principles - AmCham Chile\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"&nbsp; \u00bfQu\u00e9 son los fondos soberanos y qu\u00e9 principios debieran guiar su gesti\u00f3n? Esas fueron las preguntas debatidas en una reciente cumbre internacional en Santiago. Los fondos soberanos, de hecho, no son nada nuevo. Kuwait ha tenido uno desde mediados de los a\u00f1os 50. Abu Dhabi y Singapur crearon los suyos en la d\u00e9cada de los 70. What are sovereign wealth funds and what principles should guide their management? Those were questions debated at a recent international summit in Santiago.   Sovereign wealth funds are, in fact, nothing new. 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Esas fueron las preguntas debatidas en una reciente cumbre internacional en Santiago. Los fondos soberanos, de hecho, no son nada nuevo. Kuwait ha tenido uno desde mediados de los a\u00f1os 50. Abu Dhabi y Singapur crearon los suyos en la d\u00e9cada de los 70. What are sovereign wealth funds and what principles should guide their management? Those were questions debated at a recent international summit in Santiago.   Sovereign wealth funds are, in fact, nothing new. 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