Short answers, pulled from the story.
GIC Private Limited was established on the 1st of January 1981 by the Government of Singapore. The fund was created through a strategic decision by Goh Keng Swee, the nation's first Deputy Prime Minister, to manage the country's accumulating foreign reserves.
GIC manages a fortune estimated at US$800 billion as of May 2025. The fund maintains a strict policy of non-disclosure regarding the exact amount of funds it manages to protect Singapore's financial sovereignty from potential speculators.
GIC suffered significant losses during the 2008 global financial crisis, including an estimated 70 percent loss of value on its investment in UBS. The fund eventually recovered to its pre-crisis value by offsetting these losses with positive returns from other investments.
As of 2017, approximately 34 percent of GIC's portfolio was invested in the United States, 12 percent in Japan, and 19 percent in Asia excluding Japan. The fund operates through a network of ten offices in key financial capitals worldwide to access diverse market opportunities.
In 2013, GIC implemented a new investment framework that established a Reference Portfolio composed of 65 percent global equities and 35 percent global bonds. This framework redefined the fund's risk and return drivers to allow for greater flexibility in pursuing long-term superior returns.