– We are not very ambitious – E24

In an interview with the Financial Times, the oil fund manager described a clear difference in mentality between Europe and the United States.

Europe is less hard-working, less ambitious, less risk-averse and more regulated than the United States, according to a Norwegian oil fund manager. He writes Financial Timeswho interviewed Nikolai Tangin.

Tangen tells the newspaper that it is “worrying” that US companies are outperforming their European competitors in innovation and technology, causing US stocks to perform much better.

-There is a mental problem when it comes to accepting mistakes and risks. In America, if you fail, you get a second chance. I'm done in Europe, Tangen says.

Tangen says there is a difference in the general level of ambition between Europe and the United States.

-We are not very ambitious. I have to be careful when talking about the balance between work and leisure, but Americans work harder, an oil fund manager tells the Financial Times.

More stringent regulations

Tangen was also asked whether he and those working at the oil fund were concerned about the outcome of the US presidential election scheduled for next fall, which will be between Donald Trump and incumbent President Joe Biden.

Tangen answers this question with a “yes”, but adds that he probably shouldn't say much about it.

-We only invest in good American companies for the long term. It will have no implications on how we allocate our capital. He adds: We have nearly half of our assets in the United States and we will continue to invest in the United States.

The seven largest US technology companies dubbed the “Magnificent 7” – Amazon, Alphabet, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla – account for approximately 12 percent of stock holdings.

There's a reason there's a “winner takes all” trend with advances in artificial intelligence, Tangen tells the newspaper.

The oil fund manager says US CEOs have complained about how difficult it is to do business in Europe because of strict regulations.

– I'm not saying this is a good thing, but in the US you have a lot of AI and no regulations, while in Europe you don't have AI and a lot of regulation. It's interesting, Tangen says.