Dubai International Buys 'Substantial' Stake in Sony

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The investment by the major fund manager is rumored to be worth around $500 million. Dubai said they're impressed by Sony's leadership in electronics.

by James Brightman on Monday, November 26, 2007

Dubai International Capital, a $13 billion fund manager whose investors include the emirate's ruler, has purchased a "substantial" stake in Sony, reports Bloomberg. This marks Dubai's first investment in a Japanese company.

While officials claim the purchase to be substantial, Dubai last week said it intended to invest $500 million in a Japanese company. If that is indeed what was spent on Sony, it would only represent one percent of the electronics giant. Moxley & Co. is Sony's biggest investor with a 17.6 percent stake.

"Sony has a great management team," Anand Krishnan, Dubai International's chief operating officer, told Bloomberg. "We like their leadership position in electronics and their strong presence in emerging markets."

Sony spokesman Atsuo Omagari simply said that the company is "pleased" with the investment. At the moment it's not clear what effect (if any) this will have on the games division, which continues to post losses because of the expensive PlayStation 3. Despite the costly PS3, Sony last month reported its highest profit in three quarters thanks to sales of Cybershot cameras and Bravia HDTVs. Net income for the fiscal year ending next March 2008 is expected to more than double to a record 327.6 billion yen.