LGIM’s industrial fund has raised £150m in an over-subscribed equity raise.
Along with significant support from its existing investor base, a large part of the capital raised was from non-UK investors, drawn by the performance of the market and the reputation of the vehicle.
Michael Barrie, director of fund management at LGIM Real Assets, said: “Beyond meeting our capital raising target, we saw interest above the £150m objective, highlighting the robustness of the fund as well as the buoyancy of the sector.
LGIM’s Industrial Property Investment Fund’s assets under management are now close to £3bn across the UK. It has more than 20 development projects in the pipeline focused on urban logistics, trade developments and self-storage accommodation. The raised capital will largely be deployed to finance these projects, although it is also considering targeted acquisitions.
Jonathan Holland, senior fund manager at LGIM Real Assets, said: “Given the continued strength of the industrial sector, the fund is targeting a significant proportion of its new investment on value creation opportunities. This is primarily speculative development in and around main population centres, of which we have a strong pipeline. Given high occupational demand, these development opportunities offer an attractive risk-reward balance, with ESG and sustainability at the forefront of our delivery strategy. We have already seen significant occupier interest in our future projects, with over 50% being currently let or under offer.”
Over the last year the fund has delivered a return to investors in excess of 25%, and over the last 10 years has delivered a return of over 15% pa.
Barrie added that ESG would continue to be a focus. “Alongside delivering stable returns for its investors, all new IPIF developments will target zero enabled carbon, aligning with LGIM Real Assets wider ESG and net zero commitments.”
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