The trend towards Middle Eastern investors pumping their money into the West had been underlined by the launch of a $400m global property fund set up by Qatar National Bank.
The bank has launched the fund through Ansbacher, a London-based wealth management group it bought two years ago. It has raised a first tranche of $200m from investors in Qatar and elsewhere in the Middle East and is now aiming for another $200m.
The remit of the fund, which is advised by Strategic Real Estate Advisors (Stratreal), a boutique advisory firm, is to buy property in Europe, the UK and US.
References: Financial Times 30/09/06 page 23
