Mongolia’s Sovereign Wealth Fund Sets Sights on Transparency and Long-Term Development

Mongolia’s newly established sovereign wealth fund is preparing to appoint independent board members, engage external advisers, and implement a transparent investment strategy, as the resource-rich country embarks on an ambitious long-term development plan.

The Chinggis Khaan Sovereign Wealth Fund, founded by law in April 2024, currently holds $1.4 billion in assets. The fund, named after Genghis Khan—the founder of the Mongol Empire—plans to finalize its full strategic framework by the first half of 2026.

Mongolia now joins a growing group of resource-rich nations in Asia and the Gulf with sovereign wealth funds, alongside more recent entrants like Taiwan, Indonesia, and even the United States, which are increasingly turning to sovereign wealth models to manage natural resource wealth and long-term national savings.

“The sovereign wealth fund was set up to build trust between mining investors and the people of Mongolia,”said Temuulen Bayaraa, CEO of the Chinggis Fund, in an interview at the Milken Institute Asia Summit in Singapore.

After 17 years of national dialogue and policy deliberations, the fund was finally established with strong political consensus.

“We really needed to ensure that it’s legislated, transparent, and governed by clear rules,” Bayaraa emphasized.

Despite Mongolia’s mineral wealth, the country has faced persistent governance challenges. Corruption scandals and public mistrust have plagued its political landscape, culminating in mass protests that toppled the government in June 2025. In response, the fund is prioritizing public accountability and digital transparency.

Bayaraa announced that the fund is developing a mobile application that will allow every Mongolian citizen to track investment decisions in real-time:

“People will be able to see where we’re allocating assets, where revenue is coming from, which companies are involved, how much is being invested, and what share each citizen is entitled to benefit from,” she said.

Fund Structure and Strategy

The Chinggis Fund will adopt a three-part structure similar to Singapore’s sovereign wealth model, allocating capital for:

1. Strategic Investments – including infrastructure and national projects

2. Public Pension Support – long-term retirement security for citizens

3. Local Business Growth – helping domestic companies scale

Additional components include:

• A Heritage Fund to reinvest mineral royalties in overseas investments

• A Savings Fund, financed by dividends from state-owned mining firms

• A Development Fund, supported by windfall taxes on commodity prices, that will serve as an anchor investor in large-scale infrastructure projects and help attract foreign capital

The Chinggis Fund is fully owned by Erdenes Mongol, a state holding company that manages stakes in many of Mongolia’s most valuable mineral deposits. Financial oversight is provided by the Ministry of Finance, with the fund modeled after Norway’s Government Pension Fund, which manages over $1.9 trillion in assets through Norges Bank Investment Management.

Next Steps: Building a Solid Foundation

Bayaraa, who comes from a tech and software development background, stated that the fund is currently drafting its Investment Policy Statement for the upcoming year. Recruitment is also underway for independent board directors with international financial experience.

At present, the fund’s portfolio is conservatively managed and locked until 2030, with a focus on capital preservation during its formative years.