The Bahrain Monetary Agency (BMA) has authorized the first-ever Iranian mutual fund to be offered to Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and foreign investors. The First Iran Fund will be marketed by The First Iran Fund Company, which has been incorporated in Bahrain.
The $50 million fund will invest in equities and equity related securities of companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE), as well as in Islamic bonds. The Fund Company has been established by the Iran Foreign Investment Company (IFIC), a private joint stock company incorporated in Iran in 1992.
IFIC is wholly owned by the Government of Iran and is affiliated to the Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs of Iran. The First Iran Fund is the first vehicle to be offered to investors outside Iran. The Iran capital markets are largely closed to non-Iranian investors.
The Fund Company will serve as an umbrella fund for a number of sub funds to be launched in the future. — (menareport.com)
© 2003 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
