Why is Mubadala coming to Russia and what's main strategy for the company in this country?
Mubadala is looking for long-term investment opportunities here in Russia. The deal to create a co-investment fund was announced at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum between Mubadala Investment Company and Russian Direct Investment Fund with each of them committing $1 billion. Mubadala's strategy in Russia does not look definite at the moment, but their target sector is infrastructure, however this may be subject to change.
How could Russia benefit from this co-operation?
Well, Russia offers great opportunities for investors in terms of high return on investment, and this co-operation will be fruitful for both the countries. It is the first such company to come to Russia because investments from the region have been limited so far, so Mubadala could bring with it other companies from the region. This move will contribute to improving Russia's reputation as an investment hub. This could also partially revitalize Russian economy while some foreign investors are withdrawing their money from the country.
Analysts argue that the outflow of capital from Russia keeps going upwards. What's the current state of affairs and what sectors of Russian economy suffer most?
In the first half of 2013 capital outflow from Russia amounted to $38,1 billion, with the second quarter of the year accounted for $9,1 billion. The reasons for this are multifaceted, including the recent Cyprus bank crisis and pessimistic moods in the European bank sector. Russian banking sector is suffering the most, it accounts for approximately 30% share of loss in capital outflow, but other industries have suffered as well, but slightly less.
What is your forecast till the end of the year and long-term?
 It's quite hard to make long-term predictions, but the forecast of the Central Bank is that capital outflow will continue and by the end of the year another $10 billion will leave the economy. The total capital outflow in 2013 could reach $50 billion. The Ministry of Economic Development has also made a specified forecast, according to which in the short term capital outflow will increase. Compared to recent years, however, the figure looks slightly smaller, because capital outflow in 2011 amounted to $80 billion, in 2012 – to $56 billion.
Read more: http://english.ruvr.ru/2013_07_23/Capital-outflow-from-Russia-slows-down-but-still-sensitive-to-political-events-expert-3902/