Singaporean-listed CapitaLand has raised US$391m in the first closing of its CapitaLand Asia Partners I fund, targeting value-add and transitional office buildings in Asia’s key gateway cities.
CapitaLand began fundraising for CAP I nine months ago and has received commitments from pension funds, insurance companies, financial institutions and other institutional investors from Asia and Europe.
CAP I will focus on assets in Singapore, Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Osaka and Tokyo, the company said in an announcement.
The fund launch comes shortly after CapitaLand raised US$556m during the first closing of its maiden discretionary real estate debt fund, CREDO | China, in February.
“The expansion from our traditional club funds to commingled fund provides CapitaLand with more diverse capital partners, and the speed of CAP I’s first closing demonstrates investors’ confidence in CapitaLand’s ability to deliver strong returns for their investments,” said Lee Chee Koon, CapitaLand’s President & Group CEO.
Lee Chee Koon (image: CapitaLand)
“Continual high demand for quality commercial properties in Asia’s key gateway cities, coupled with low supply, have made the renewal of ageing commercial assets a compelling investment strategy in these markets.”
CapitaLand Investment Management CEO James Lim said several new investors joined the company’s fund management platform during the latest capital raising.
“CAP I has a ready pipeline of investment opportunities for capital deployment and we expect to deploy capital in the coming months,” he said.
“We are now in advanced discussion with several groups and expect subsequent closings for the fund.”
CAP I is the latest addition to CapitaLand’s expanding fund management business — the central component of the company’s active capital management strategy.
The group CEO said CapitaLand was poised to become one of the top 10 largest real estate investment managers globally following its latest fund launches and the recent acquisition of Ascendas-Singbridge.
The S$11bn Ascendas-Singbridge deal recently received shareholder approval, growing its fund management platform to 24 private funds and eight listed real estate investment trusts.
Following the merger, the enlarged company has S$123.4bn (US$90.9bn) of assets under management.