The State Oil Fund of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ) has made an investment commitment in the amount of EUR 100 million in a first closing of the Equity Participation Fund (EPF), a debut fund managed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

The EPF is established to give institutional investors an opportunity to participate in the EBRD’s direct equity investment portfolio in Central and Eastern Europe, Central Asia and the southern and eastern Mediterranean region, as well as in Turkey, with the objective of achieving long term capital growth by making investments in financial, industrial, agricultural, infrastructure, and energy sectors.

Commenting on the investment, Shahmar Movsumov, Executive Director of SOFAZ stated: “Investing in the EPF is a natural progression for our investment strategy and further cements our plans to diversify into different asset classes and geographies. This innovative investment structure is also an attractive opportunity to partner with the EBRD which has the extensive experience and strong local presence in the region. EBRD’s investments are exposed to a number of long-term growth drivers that we look for, and we believe that these investments will deliver strong risk-adjusted returns for the Fund.”