Kuwait’s $700 billion sovereign wealth fund appointed Abdulmohsin Al-Mukhaizeem as the permanent head of its London arm, just over a year after the unit’s former boss was ousted.
Al-Mukhaizeem joins the Kuwait Investment Office from Wafra International Investment — a subsidiary of the country’s state pension fund — where he was chief investment officer, according to consultant Global SWF. He also spent seven years at the private equity arm of Kuwait’s largest bank.
Kuwait Investment Authority officials couldn’t be reached for comment.
The fund’s UK unit was thrust into the spotlight last year amid legal battles with former executives and after its previous chief Saleh Al-Ateeqi, a former McKinsey partner hired to modernize the branch, was ousted. He was temporarily replaced by Hussain Al Halabi.
Read More: UK Chief’s Ouster Exposes Clash at $769 Billion Kuwait Fund
The KIO’s foundation predates Kuwait’s independence. The fund was later placed under the KIA, but it still manages a large chunk of the oil exporter’s sovereign assets.
Its troubles are emblematic of the broader political upheaval in Kuwait and the divisions within the sovereign fund, which has lost several senior managers over the past year and has executed fewer deals compared with its peers in the Gulf.
Read More: Kuwait’s $700 Billion Fund Is Being Eclipsed by Ambitious Peers
