HBOS, the recently merged Halifax and Bank of Scotland, is to launch a fund management operation targeting £8bn worth of institutional and retail investment.
The bank, which has £70bn under management, said it would expand and re-brand its investment arm Clerical Medical in a bid to become one of the UK’s top three property investment managers over the next five years.
Charles Hunter, head of property at Clerical Medical, said: “We are moving up a notch in our investment division and defining ourselves differently in terms of focus and scale, and that includes creating new ways for our clients to invest in property.”
He said the group aimed to raise £7bn annually by 2006, but did not specify how this would be accomplished. “It is early days yet in terms of how we will achieve this, but our main aim is to increase our market presence,” he said.
Hunter added: “The property market has changed significantly in the past decade, and many people and institutions want to invest through non-traditional channels. So we hope to tap into that need.”
EGi News 13/11/01
