ASIA NEWS: The Grosvenor club

The UK property firm is set to pitch a $500 million investment club for luxury residential developments in China and Japan. PERE Magazine July/August 2013 issue.


Alert institutional investors interested in partnering with one of London’s most prestigious property companies.

PERE
can reveal that Grosvenor, the property company of the Duke of Westminster, is poised to launch an investment club aimed at making investments in luxury residential properties in Asia and is looking for two to three investors with which to partner. To show it is serious about its venture, Grosvenor plans to commit $50 million from its balance sheet into the vehicle, accounting for between 10 percent and 12.5 percent of the $400 million to $500 million in equity it hopes to attract.

On the menu for Grosvenor are the cities in which the firm already has a presence and track record, namely Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing and Tokyo. The strategy for the six-year vehicle will be to locate and invest in development and refurbishment opportunities in these cities.

“We’re seeing real demand in the upper-middle to luxury end,” noted Nicholas Loup, Grosvenor’s chief executive officer for Asia. “We are seeing a gentle cyclical recovery underway, as there is evidence of companies increasing wages and consumption numbers edging up.”