Russia, Turkey funds to create joint investment pool

Russian Direct Investment Fund and Turkey Wealth Fund agreed to create a €900 million ($1 billion) investment fund focused on investments on technology, health care and infrastructure, Russia's sovereign wealth fund said on its website.

The Russia-Turkey Investment Fund will initially invest €200 million in joint projects and follows an agreement signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan,

"Today the health-care, infrastructure and technology sectors are some of the most attractive for investment and development of our domestic economies. Once implemented, the projects will significantly improve living standards and will substantially increase the volume and efficiency of business engagement between our countries," Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the $10 billion Russian Direct Investment Fund, said in a news release.

Zafer Sonmez, managing director and member of the board of Turkey Wealth Fund, said in the release, "This is an important milestone for Turkey Wealth Fund, and we believe initiating investments through Russian Direct Investment Fund in focused sectors will cement the relationship of both sovereign investment funds and further strengthen the relationship between Turkey and Russia."

Turkey Wealth Fund has $40 billion in assets, according to Sovereign Wealth Institute.