New head of top wealth fund. The Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute puts ADIA's wealth at $627 billio, but ADIA, for its part, has never disclosed the size of its assets

ABU DHABI - SHEIKH Hamed bin Zayed al-Nahayan has been named to head the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, the world's largest sovereign wealth fund, official news agency WAM said on Wednesday.

The appointment follows the death of ADIA's former managing director and his brother, Sheikh Ahmed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, when his glider crashed into a lake in Morocco last month.

Their eldest brother, the president of the United Arab Emirates and Abu Dhabi's ruler, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan, remains the chairman of ADIA, whose assets are estimated at more than US$600 billion (S$825 billion).

The new chief is also the director of the council of Abu Dhabi's crown prince, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahayan. The late Sheikh Ahmed, who managed ADIA from 1997, had been ranked by Forbes as the 27th most powerful personality in the world in 2009.

Created in 1976, ADIA manages a large chunk of the wealth of the emirate of Abu Dhabi, which sits on some 95 per cent of the UAE's oil wealth - a total of 97.8 billion barrels of oil. An annual report published on March 15, said ADIA invested between 35 to 50 per cent in North America, 25 to 35 per cent in Europe and between 25 and 45 per cent in Asia and other markets.

The Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute puts ADIA's wealth at $627 billio, but ADIA, for its part, has never disclosed the size of its assets. -- AFP