State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan not planning new investment in VTB shares - fund head

BAKU. Jan 24 (Interfax) - The State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ) does not plan to increase its stake in Russia's VTB Bank , the fund's executive director Israfil Mammadov said.

"Since 2012, SOFAZ has been investing in shares with the aim of diversifying its investment portfolio. As part of this, in 2013, we acquired a 3% stake in VTB Bank, one of the largest and most systemically important financial institutions in Russia, with assets of approximately 26 trillion rubles (ranking second in the Russian market). I would like to note that in the near future, no additional investments in VTB Bank are planned," Mammadov said in an interview with Azerbaijan's Report agency.

SOFAZ has received 3.9 billion rubles in dividends since it began investing in VTB, he said.

"I would also like to point out that in accordance with VTB Bank's internal dividend policy, no dividend payments have been made to shareholders since 2021," he said.

Established in December 1999, SOFAZ accumulates revenues from implementing oil contracts, specifically from selling the government's profitable oil and gas, revenues from tariffs for transporting oil and gas across the country, from leasing out government property, and others. As of the end of 2924, the assets of SOFAZ are estimated at $60 billion.