Qatar to invest £5b in Britain

Qatar has plans to invest £5 billion ($6.3 billion) in the United Kingdom within five years, Prime Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa al-Thani announced Monday in London after appearing at an investment forum that brought together more than 400 British and Qatari business leaders and senior politicians.

The main focus of the new investment will be in assets worth more than £200 million ($250 million) in infrastructure, energy, technology and property, according to a Financial Times article.

The Qatar Investment Authority already has invested more than £40 billion ($50 billion) across the United Kingdom. Assets include London’s Shard and Canary Wharf buildings, the Harrod’s department store, and the Olympic Village following the London 2012 Olympics.

The QIA also plans to turn the current U.S. embassy in London into an exclusive hotel.

Prime Minister al-Thani also announced plans to open an office in Northern California’s Silicon Valley as part of a drive to move the Qatari economy away from oil and into more sustainable sectors.

Qatar's sovereign wealth fund chief meanwhile said the vote to leave the European Union would not prevent its future investment in the United Kingdom. U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May is set to officially begin the Brexit on March 29.