Market uncertainty, what market uncertainty?
The prevailing refrain PERE has received from market participants in the last six months has been volatility in the market is causing investment opportunities to dry up and fundraising to slow. Somehow, Toronto-based mega-manager Brookfield Asset Management did not get the memo. The Toronto-based firm only just closed its fourth global flagship real estate fund, Brookfield Real Estate Partners IV, in Q4 last year – its largest ever – but is already out fundraising for its fifth iteration, according to a letter to shareholders from chief executive Bruce Flatt. The firm will hold a first close “in the coming months,” he added.

The firm re-enters the fundraising arena so quickly because the prior fund is “materially invested or committed.” Supplemental information from the earnings call showed Fund IV had committed more than $14 billion of the $17 billion raised. No target was articulated for the new fund. However, Connor Teskey, president, told investors on an earnings call last week: “We have continued to scale our flagship funds and expect to continue to do so going forward.”

GLP reunited
The operations of US offshoot GLP Capital Partners have been reassumed by the logistics giant which let it spin out four years ago. The firm has merged with Singapore-headquartered logistics giant GLP, becoming its exclusive investment and asset manager, according to an announcement last week. As part of the reorganization, Alan Yang will be CEO of the now-reconnected outfit having served as CEO of GCP during its years away. The new structure “puts us in a position to grow GCP into one of the only truly global alternative asset managers with both a leading presence in Asia and a track record of scale and success in the US, Brazil and Europe,” he said. GCP spun out in 2019 after GLP’s $18.7 billion sale of logistics assets from three of its US funds to Blackstone – our coverage of that deal here.

Nuveen targets closed-end value in Europe
Nuveen Real Estate, the London-headquartered investment arm of the private pension fund, has launched a closed-ended European value-added fund. The firm has raised €180 million against a €300 million target, including a €50 million commitment from parent company TIAA and €75 million from Danish pension fund Sampension. The fund type represents something of a vehicle shift for Nuveen, which has most recently been investing in Europe via open-ended vehicles, including its second European Logistics Fund launched in 2022, and its European Cities Fund, which launched in 2016 and had €2 billion-worth of commitments. With the incoming capital, Nuveen will target urban logistics, housing and other alternative property types in response to anticipated repricing, according to an announcement. David Pearce, fund manager, said: “As such we have identified an opportunity to deliver new areas of potential value to our investors by sourcing assets that can meet the needs of an evolving world.”

Core-plus capital equals opportunity
Another firm positioning itself for the market dislocation in Europe is PGIM Real Estate. The Newark, New Jersey-based manager has added more than $400 million of capital in the last six months via its latest European core-plus fund. PGIM Real Estate will use the money to invest in logistics, multifamily, senior and student housing, new-generation office, hotels and self-storage, according to an announcement seen by PERE. The vehicle is being overseen by Jocelyn de Verdelon, senior portfolio manager and head of transactions in Europe. “In this high-inflation environment and amid market dislocations, investors increasingly want strategies that are able to distribute sustainable income and generate alpha,” de Verdelon said.