Renshaw Bay has closed its first Real estate debt fund at £356m despite the imminent departure of founder Bill Winters to Standard Chartered.
Commentators had predicted the fund to struggle to attract investors after Winters, a former chief executive of JP Morgan Europe, announced his departure last Thursday.
But the Renshaw Bay Real Estate Finance Fund saw one investor join and another increase its allocation after the announcement, the company said.
Peter Rosenbauer, head of business development at Renshaw Bay, said: “It’s business as usual on the real estate side of the business. Bill is leaving his money in the funds, we have a very supportive shareholder and from a borrower perspective there is no change.
“The team is continuing to deploy capital,” he said.
The real estate lending business is headed by another JP Morgan veteran, Jon Rickert, who joined in 2012. The fund focuses on direct, whole loans for mostly German and UK commercial real estate, in a niche where funding is lacking for borrowers. Final investment came from a US family trust, a UK local authority and more funds from a global private bank.
The business is believed to be aiming at 10% IRR net for investors and an 8% coupon. It has already deployed £179m in capital across 14 loans.
The fund predicts it will close on further deals in the coming weeks and has a “robust pipeline” of future deals.
