Scottish Widows is on the brink of a £400m investment drive into continental Europe.
The UK institution is putting up £150m to £200m, which it will gear up to £400m, to invest in office and industrial property in Europe,
The cash is believed to be part of an increased weighting for property rather than being redirected from UK investments.
Scottish Widows is understood to be targeting office developments in Spain and Germany, concentrating on Madrid and Frankfurt, as well as on industrial property in France.
Widows bought a 9,435m2 light industrial and office scheme in Carrières-sur-Seine near Paris last year.
Jones Lang LaSalle and King Sturge are understood to have advised Widows on its strategy.
The firm joins other UK institutions that are breaking out of the country. Royal Bank of Scotland is setting up a European fund, comprising £1bn of equity and debt to invest across all sectors.
And Equitable Life has recently stepped up investments in Europe via its investments in ProLogis’ European Properties Fund, Pradera’s European retail fund and the Schroder European Property Fund.
Standard Life has also invested in Paris, Brussels and most recently in Spain.
