Border to Coast Pensions Partnership, one of the UK’s largest asset owner pools, has appointed abrdn to support the launch and portfolio management of its UK real estate proposition.
Border to Coast’s 11 local government pension fund shareholders and investors currently collectively invest around £4bn, both in directly held properties and indirectly through property funds.
The Border to Coast UK real estate proposition, due to launch in late 2024, is designed to help investors in the fund benefit from the scale that pooling brings.
Abdrn will work with Border to Coast’s internal real estate investment team to support, develop and implement the investment strategy, source real estate opportunities across the UK and provide portfolio management services.
Active stewardship and ESG considerations will be embedded into the investment process, including both portfolio construction and asset management.
Border to Coast is also planning to launch a separate £1bn global real estate proposition later this year.
Alistair Smith, head of real estate at Border to Coast, said: “UK real estate is a fundamental asset class for our partner funds’ wider investment strategies. Our collective scale will allow us to deliver significant value for our partner funds, enabling us to invest in high-quality assets and manage them for the long term, while meeting our, and our partner funds’, responsible investment and net zero commitments.”
Local government pension schemes invested in Border to Coast include Bedfordshire, Cumbria, Durham, East Riding, Lincolnshire, North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Surrey, Teesside, Tyne and Wear and Warwickshire. Their combined assets total some £60bn.
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