U.S. Cartesian Capital Group, one of the world's leading direct investment funds, has acquired a 2.5 percent stake in Moscow Exchange alongside the Russian Direct Investment Fund, the RDIF said on Friday.
The RDIF, set up to lure foreign investment to modernize the Russian economy, has also increased its share in Moscow Exchange, formerly the MICEX-RTS, from the 1.25 percent it purchased in January to 2.7 percent. The two funds bought their stakes from UniCredit Bank, Russian subsidiary of Italy's UniCredit Bank AG, which reduced its stake to 6.2 percent. The value of the deal was not revealed.
"It is our second investment in the exchange and we together with Cartesian ... are ready to support the Moscow Exchange further to stimulate its development," RDIF head Kirill Dmitriev was quoted as saying in a statement.
Cartesian Managing Partner Peter Yu said the company invested in Moscow Exchange because it plays a key role in Russia's goal of becoming an international financial center and has good prospects to hold an initial public offering.
Moscow Exchange plans to hold an IPO in late 2012 or in early 2013, to raise about $1 billion.
"We appreciate this fact [about the investment] very much. It means that foreign investors believe in the Russian market. The core thing for us now to justify their trust," said Moscow Exchange's executive director for primary market formation, Yekaterina Novokreshchenikh.
Russia's direct investment fund was established in June 2011 to co-finance investment by foreign funds and companies in Russian projects and is managed by Vnesheconombank.
Russia's sovereign fund, which will have a capital of about $10 billion contributed by the federal budget, is expected to attract from $60 billion to $90 billion in foreign investment within five years.
