Former hedge fund owner Nicolai Tangen faces close scrutiny after the political storm over his appointment
Nicolai Tangen rather demonstratively rode an e-scooter to Norway’s central bank on his first day as chief executive of the $1tn oil fund — the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund.
But a few days later in September, he fell off his scooter, hurting his shoulder and ending up with his arm in a sling. “Nicolai is a bit embarrassed,” the fund said.
The accident is not the only slip-up to have hit the world’s largest single investor — which owns the equivalent of 1.5 per cent of every listed company globally — in recent months.
A political storm around the appointment of Mr Tangen, a former hedge fund owner and manager, plunged Norway’s fund into the biggest crisis in its 24-year history.
Few doubted the qualifications of Mr Tangen as an investor. He has run and controlled AKO Capital, a London-based hedge fund with $21bn in assets, for the past 15 years. Described as one of Europe’s leading investment firms by Norges Bank governor Oystein Olsen, it has a focus on long-term investing, forensic accounting, and behavioural analysis.