This time by a Chinese sovereign wealth fund with a taste for – what else? – Big Oil. Perfect timing, as we noticed word finally got out today that Russia’s oil output is stalling. How one stealthy player procured a tidy grubstake amounting to roughly $2 billion in the U.K.’s largest company by market capitalization.

A Chinese sovereign wealth fund has built up a stake of about £1bn in BP, in a move which has caused a stir within the British government, reports the Daily Telegraph. The fund is understood to have quietly acquired the shares in the market over a period. It has accumulated just under 1% of BP, the UK’s largest company with a market cap of £104bn.

A BP spokesman said the company was “aware of the Chinese holding” and “welcomed all shareholders”. The Chinese fund has also built up a stake in France’s oil giant Total worth about £1bn, the Telegraph added.

The FT reported April 4 that the fund that acquired the Total stake is China’s State Administration of Foreign Exchange, or Safe. The Kuwait Investment Authority is among several other sovereign funds to also hold shares in BP, the report added.

Continue reading on FT.com

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