LaSalle fundraising for fifth Asia oppo fund

The real estate investment manager has already announced its first investment from the fund and is targeting a $400m first close in October.

LaSalle Investment Management is on the fundraising trail for its fifth Asia opportunistic vehicle and is targeting a first close of around $300-$400 million by October.

LaSalle Asia Opportunity V is the latest vehicle in the series of closed-ended pan Asia high risk/return funds launched by the firm. PERE had reported on the imminent launch of Fund V in November last year with a $750 million capital raising target. A hard cap of $1 billion has been set.

The firm has said in an official statement that it currently has “a number of executed/pending commitments from existing institutional investors in North America and Europe” for the fund.

“I am delighted to announce the preliminary closing of the latest fund in the very successful Asia Opportunity series. LaSalle’s current fundraise is testimony to the firm’s successful track record and deep experience in property investment in Asia-Pacific with an emphasis on asset enhancement coupled with the strength of our global client base,” said Mark Gabbay, chief executive officer for Asia Pacific at LaSalle Investment Management.

Meanwhile the firm also closed the acquisition of the fund’s first seed asset in early August. The asset is a retail property in between the Osaka City and the international airport.

“This first acquisition is a good example of the fund’s strategy in Japan and will allow LaSalle to leverage our strong retail operational ability,” said Kunihiko Okumura, head of acquisitions in Japan for LaSalle. “We plan to execute a turnaround of the property, which will include capital improvements and re-tenanting, and will differentiate it from other developments in the trading area.”

Similar to the investment strategy of its predecessor funds, LaSalle Opportunity Fund V will invest in assets with a repositioning and redevelopment potential. The target investment markets include Japan, Australia, China, Singapore and Hong Kong.

According to LaSalle Investment Management, it has invested over $10 billion via the LaSalle Asia Opportunity Series across approximately 150 investments.