Valcov on Sovereign Investment Fund: Coalition members have agreed on way the GD must look, Gov’t will probably adopt it a week from now at the latest. Darius Valcov, adviser to Premier Viorica Dancila, has stated that the topic of the Sovereign Investment Fund was discussed last week and the members of the coalition “agreed on the way the Government Decision must look, and the Government will probably adopt it a week from now at the latest.” “The latest discussion on the Sovereign Fund took place last week; the members of the coalition have agreed on the way the GD must look. The Government will probably adopt it a week from now at the latest, because it’s been already sitting in transparency since December 28 last year, and we hope this sovereign fund would be the main development engine for small and medium and even large Romanian companies, but also the main aid for exporters and for those who want to extend their area of action outside the country too, including hospitals,” Valcov stated on Monday on the public television channel. Asked when will the Sovereign Development and Investment Fund become operational, the state adviser said he estimates the fund will become operational in mid-2019, “with the clear target to invest more than 20 billion euro in the economy by the end of this year and next year, through this instrument that will become the main development engine.” National Bank Governor should allow “younger people to carry on” Valcov believes that National Bank Governor Mugur Isarescu must allow “younger people to carry on.” “After such history, let’s be realistic! He has surpassed the Pope, he has surpassed whoever you may name. Still, at some point, we must admit our limitations and allow younger people to carry on,” state adviser Darius Valcov stated on TVR on Monday evening, referring to National Bank of Romania Governor Mugur Isarescu. Asked what would be the profile of a BNR Governor, Valcov said he/she “must be extremely well prepared on the current monetary and financial market, have very good relations, collaborate excellently with the Government, with the other state authorities, be someone who would want only the well-being of the population and by this I certainly do not mean loans whose interest rates are double or triple those in the rest of Europe.” He said Mugur Isarescu “definitely did not do the right thing in the interest of the population” in the years in which he has been at the helm of the BNR. Darius Valcov compared the relationship between the Government and the BNR with the legend of chief architect Manole, stating that the BNR is “delivering blow to the foundations” of what the Government “has built.” “Someone is building, and it’s been clearly seen how the Government has built during these two years and someone else is delivering blows to the foundations,” he said.