Kuwait the first GCC country to recognize China and to have an Embassy located in it, enjoyed relations based on mutual respect and cooperation with China for the past five decades. This culminated in 2009, in Beijing, during the visit of His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, The Amir of Kuwait; where Kuwait and China agreed to deepen bilateral cooperation in economic, trade, energy, infrastructure and finance sectors.

Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) realized the importance of investing in China and the Far East. The agreements signed in 2009 laid down the basic ground work for such investments. One of the results of this is the establishment in Beijing of Kuwait Investment Authority’s first ever representative office. And this office was a gateway to expanding KIA’s investment throughout China.

Further to KIA opening a Representative office in Beijing, during the second visit of His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, The Amir of Kuwait and his interest in China, KIA has upgraded its structure with a WOFE – Kuwait Investment Office (Shanghai) in 2018. And it became the second overseas investment office after Kuwait Investment office (London) which is dated back to 1953.

As part of a joint effort to be actively involved in regional investment opportunities, this movement will help KIA to further expand the depth and the width of the investment horizon in China and Asia Pacific areas. Furthermore, the relocation of the office from Beijing to Shanghai reflects our belief to the increasingly importance of Shanghai as a global financial center.

As the regional hub, KIO (Shanghai) will carry the original task of promoting the investment presence of Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) in the region. More than that, Shanghai Office will be more actively in identifying and investing in attractive opportunities in the region.