Regime Changer? Sovereign Wealth Funds and the International Investment System

by David G. Fromm

In the past two decades, the use of bilateral investment treaties as vehicles to facilitate foreign direct investment has expanded significantly, creating an international investment framework so pervasive that it is now characterized as a “regime.”

In this brief, the author will first consider whether SWF investors can fit within the current investment regime from a jurisdictional perspective. Second, he will consider structural issues SWFs are likely to confront within that regime. Third, he will consider the implications of SWF investment on the regime’s putatively “bilateral” structures. Finally, he will conclude by suggesting how SWF investments are likely to be accommodated by the regime.

Regime Changer – Sovereign Wealth Funds and the International Investment System