2010:
The Ministry of Finance gives the fund a mandate to invest as much as 5 percent of its assets in real estate, reducing its share of fixed-income investments correspondingly.
2009:
The fund’s ethical guidelines are evaluated. Its share of equity investments reaches 60 percent in June. The fund posts a record return of 25.6 percent.
2008:
The Ministry of Finance includes real estate to the fund's investment universe, with a maximum share of 5 percent of total assets. All emerging markets are included in the reference equity index.
2007:
The Ministry of Finance decides to increase the fund’s share of equity investments to 60 percent from 40 percent. It also decides to add small-cap companies to the benchmark portfolio.
2006:
The Government Petroleum Fund changes its name to the Government Pension Fund Global.
2004:
Ethical guidelines are established for the fund.
2002:
Corporate and securitised bonds are added to the fund’s benchmark fixed-income index.
2000–2008:
The fund grows faster than expected because of large capital transfers from the Ministry of Finance, as a result of increasing oil prices.
2000:
Five emerging markets are added to the fund’s benchmark equity index.
1998:
Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM) is set up on 1 January to manage the fund on behalf of the Ministry of Finance. NBIM converts about 40 percent of the fund’s bond portfolio into equities within the first half of 1998.
1997:
The fund is wholly invested in government bonds. The ministry decides to invest 40 percent of the fund in equities.
1996:
The fund gets its first capital transfer from the Ministry of Finance. This is invested in the same way as the Norwegian central bank’s foreign exchange reserves.
1990:
Norway’s Parliament passes a law to establish the Government Petroleum Fund. The plan is to regularly transfer capital from the government’s petroleum revenue to the fund. The fund’s purpose is to support the government’s long-term management of petroleum revenue.
1969:
Ekofisk, Norway’s first oil field, is discovered in the North Sea. Production starts in 1971.
