Patron Capital has raised more than €880m (£694m) of equity for its new European property fund.
The specialist pan-European opportunistic and distressed asset investor said the total included a €100m dedicated discretionary co-investment pool for its new fund, Patron Capital IV.
The group said Fund IV attracted cash from “blue-chip investors” which included existing investors as well as new names – 40% of the total – that included prominent universities, major institutions, private foundations and high net worth individuals located in Europe, North America, Asia and the Middle East.
The fund, which can invest on its own or co-invest with other Patron’s €3bn war chest, will target distressed and undervalued investments, directly or indirectly related to property, primarily across western Europe.
It will continue to target distressed property and property-backed corporate investments including property companies, hotels and leisure and healthcare, which fit the firm’s risk-adjusted return characteristics.
Investments are targeted with the aim of generating a 17% to 22% gross IRR over a three- to five-year investment horizon.
Some 15% of Fund IV has already been deployed, with initial investments including Luxury Family Hotels – the distressed Von Essen properties – as well as the Motor Fuels Group chain of retail/petrol stations and the distressed Uni-Invest CMBS transaction in the Netherlands.
Keith Breslauer, Patron Capital’s founder and managing director, said: “We are delighted with the excellent response we have received to Fund IV. The banking crisis, recession and real estate downturn have created exceptional conditions for Patron to source and execute investments with highly attractive absolute and risk-adjusted return potential over the fund’s investment period.
“There is a plethora of opportunities in Europe at this point in time and the €880m we have attracted will enable us to pursue our clear thematic approach.
“We have a large, experienced, passionate and hands-on investment team, whose interests are fully aligned with those of our investors, and a deep in-house skill base in all aspects of deal sourcing, structuring, closing, development and management. Our focus is on becoming the market leader in distressed asset investment in Europe.”
Monument Group acted as the exclusive placement agent.
bridget.oconnell@estatesgazette.com
