Skip to main content
MENU
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • LOGIN
  • Subscribe
  • Topics
    • Alternatives
    • Consultants
    • Courts
    • Defined Contribution
    • ESG
    • ETFs
    • Face to Face
    • Hedge Funds
    • Industry Voices
    • Investing
    • Money Management
    • Partner Content
    • Pension Funds
    • Private Equity
    • Real Estate
    • Regulation
    • SECURE 2.0
    • Special Reports
    • Washington
    • White Papers
  • Rankings & Awards
    • 1,000 Largest Retirement Plans
    • Top-Performing Managers
    • Largest Money Managers
    • DC Money Managers
    • DC Record Keepers
    • Largest Hedge Fund Managers
    • World's Largest Retirement Funds
    • Best Places to Work in Money Management
    • Excellence & Innovation Awards
    • WPS Innovation Awards
    • Eddy Awards
  • ETFs
    • Latest ETF News
    • Fund Screener
    • Education Center
    • Equities
    • Fixed Income
    • Commodities
    • Actively Managed
    • Alternatives
    • ESG Rated
  • ESG
    • Latest ESG News
    • The Institutional Investor’s Guide to ESG Investing
    • ESG Sustainability - Gaining Momentum
    • ESG Investing | Industry Brief
    • Innovation in ESG Investing
    • 2023 ESG Investing Conference
    • ESG Rated ETFs
  • Defined Contribution
    • Latest DC News
    • The Plan Sponsor's Guide to Retirement Income
    • DC Money Manager Rankings
    • DC Record Keeper Rankings
    • Innovations in DC
    • Trends in DC: Focus on Retirement Income
    • 2023 Defined Contribution East Conference
  • Searches & Hires
    • Latest Searches & Hires News
    • Searches & Hires Database
    • RFPs
  • Research Center
    • The P&I Research Center
    • Earnings Tracker
    • Endowment Returns Tracker
    • Corporate Pension Contribution Tracker
    • Pension Fund Returns Tracker
    • Pension Risk Transfer Database
  • Careers
  • Events
    • View All Conferences
    • View All Webinars
    • 2023 Canadian Pension Risk Strategies
    • 2023 Retirement Income
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. ASSET OWNERS
December 08, 2014 12:00 AM

Singapore SWF in midst of worldwide property spree

Douglas Appell
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print

    Don't tell GIC Private Ltd. executives that the tidal wave of liquidity central banks are flushing into capital markets has left little value to be had in prospective real estate investments around the globe.

    On Dec. 1, the Singapore sovereign wealth fund, through its affiliates, agreed to buy 117 million square feet of U.S. industrial property from Blackstone Group LP for $8.1 billion. The deal caps a year that's seen the fund and its affiliates commit roughly $12 billion to real estate investments in the U.S., Europe and Asia. (All amounts in this story, unless otherwise noted, are in U.S. dollars.)

    GIC has been “incredibly active in the last 12 months,” buying, selling and forming joint ventures, said Alistair Meadows, head of the international capital group, Asia Pacific, with Jones Lang LaSalle in Singapore.

    Other real estate deals in the past three months have included:

    nA commitment of up to $250 million to a joint venture with Indonesian property firm Rajawali Corp. to build office, retail, residential and mixed-use projects in Jakarta's central business district;

    nAn $800 million commitment to a joint venture with Sydney, Australia-based shopping center operator Scentre Group to acquire five shopping centers in New Zealand;

    nA $119 million investment in a joint venture with Goodman (NZ) to invest in the Viaduct Quarter section of Auckland, New Zealand's, central business district;

    nThe purchase of a 20% stake in Turkish real estate developer Ronesans Gayrimenkul Yatirim A.S. for $308 million;

    nThe purchase of Pacific Century Place Marunouchi, a 32-story mixed-use tower in Tokyo, from Secured Capital Japan Co. for $1.7 billion;

    nThe sale — to Norway's Norges Bank Investment Management — of GIC's 100% interest in the Bank of America Merrill Lynch Financial Centre in the City of London for $913 million;

    nThe purchase of a 30% stake in Spanish property developer Gmp Group for $313 million; and

    nA $121 million investment in a joint venture with India-based property developer Brigade Group.

    Those investments might have been made — at least to some extent — to lift GIC's real estate allocation to its target range of 9% to 13%. As of March 31, according to GIC's annual report, the fund had a 7% allocation.

    Market veterans say GIC's flurry of real estate investments in recent months suggests a degree of confidence in the long-term prospects for property markets.

    Seeing pockets of value

    In an environment where key market segments — such as core assets in gateway cities — are widely seen as pricey, GIC officials appear to remain comfortable that pockets of value can still be had by those with the resources to ferret them out, said Henry Ching, a Hong Kong-based principal with Mercer, and Asia head of the consulting firm's real estate boutique.

    Richard Tan, Hong Kong-based head of private markets, Asia, with Towers Watson & Co., said that as a general proposition, big asset owners in the region still see room for opportunistic allocations to specific markets, even if the market in general is not favorable.

    Veteran real estate analysts say GIC's large internal team, and decades-long experience working with joint venture partners, leave the fund well-positioned to hunt for value in less obvious corners of the market.

    Market watchers peg the size of GIC's real estate team between 150 and 200 people.

    With 10 offices around the world and a deep investment team, GIC has “boots on the ground” and long experience in cultivating local property development partners capable of doing “scalable ventures,” said Nicholas Crockett, Singapore-based executive director of CBRE's Asia-Pacific capital advisers' team.

    Many big institutional funds have gravitated to direct investments with local partners to gain more control over their programs, but GIC remains one of the leaders in moving beyond core, developed markets to emerging markets as well, noted Mr. Crockett.

    JLL's Mr. Meadows pointed to the fund's October purchases of stakes in Spanish developer Gmp and Turkish developer RGY as an iteration of the partnership-joint venture model that a growing number of big institutional investors could employ in years to come.

    Keeping up the pace of their real estate investments by “simply acquiring individual assets around the world” will prove increasingly difficult, resulting in more M&A platform deals, he predicted.

    In an e-mailed response to questions, Chris Morrish, London-based regional head of GIC Real Estate, cited GIC's investments in RGY and Gmp as examples of his organization's long-term orientation attracting property developers that are “leaders in their respective markets,” with “better access to opportunities than we (have), as well as on-the-ground expertise to exploit such opportunities.”

    While the number of these tie-ups remains small for now, the ability of asset owners to provide a capital injection to property developers in markets where liquidity and leverage are proving problematic could make countries such as China fertile ground for those platform deals, said Towers Watson's Mr. Tan.

    GIC officials have declined to reveal the size of their fund, beyond saying it's well above $100 billion. Some estimates put the value of the portfolio at more than $300 billion. n

    Related Articles
    Singapore's GIC awarded RQFII license
    GIC, Exeter Property Group form European real estate partnership
    Quebec's Caisse, APG Asset Management invest in China real estate developer
    Singapore's GIC reports improved long-term gains but sees tougher times ahead
    GIC to invest $300 million in real estate joint venture with DLF Home Developers
    Recommended for You
    Stack_of_Money_i.jpg
    Wilshire TUCS plans post first positive return of year in Q4
    FTX_Screen_i.jpg
    FTX bankruptcy ensnares Kraft, Och and other family offices
    ONLINE_180419851_AR_0_SWJHUISTXOVN.jpg
    Northern Trust plan universe returns -4.2% in Q3
    Quest for Quality Amid Market Turmoil
    Sponsored Content: Quest for Quality Amid Market Turmoil

    Reader Poll

    May 1, 2023
     
    SEE MORE POLLS >
    Sponsored
    White Papers
    Counting on a Crisis: A Catalyst for Investment Innovation?
    A Strategic Allocator's Guide to Productivity and Profits
    Biodiversity: why investors should care
    Quantifying sustainability – the numbers, the data, and the people
    Valuing Banks: Hidden Losses Versus Assets
    Research for Institutional Money Management
    View More
    Sponsored Content
    Partner Content
    The Industrialization of ESG Investment
    For institutional investors, ETFs can make meeting liquidity needs easier
    Gold: the most effective commodity investment
    2021 Investment Outlook | Investing Beyond the Pandemic: A Reset for Portfolios
    Ten ways retirement plan professionals add value to plan sponsors
    Gold: an efficient hedge
    View More
    E-MAIL NEWSLETTERS

    Sign up and get the best of News delivered straight to your email inbox, free of charge. Choose your news – we will deliver.

    Subscribe Today
    December 12, 2022 page one

    Get access to the news, research and analysis of events affecting the retirement and institutional money management businesses from a worldwide network of reporters and editors.

    Subscribe
    Connect With Us
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn

    Our Mission

    To consistently deliver news, research and analysis to the executives who manage the flow of funds in the institutional investment market.

    About Us

    Main Office
    685 Third Avenue
    Tenth Floor
    New York, NY 10017-4036

    Chicago Office
    130 E. Randolph St.
    Suite 3200
    Chicago, IL 60601

    Contact Us

    Careers at Crain

    About Pensions & Investments

     

    Advertising
    • Media Kit
    • P&I Content Solutions
    • P&I Careers | Post a Job
    • Reprints & Permissions
    Resources
    • Subscribe
    • Newsletters
    • FAQ
    • P&I Research Center
    • Site map
    • Staff Directory
    Legal
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Request
    Pensions & Investments
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • Topics
      • Alternatives
      • Consultants
      • Courts
      • Defined Contribution
      • ESG
      • ETFs
      • Face to Face
      • Hedge Funds
      • Industry Voices
      • Investing
      • Money Management
      • Partner Content
      • Pension Funds
      • Private Equity
      • Real Estate
      • Regulation
      • SECURE 2.0
      • Special Reports
      • Washington
      • White Papers
    • Rankings & Awards
      • 1,000 Largest Retirement Plans
      • Top-Performing Managers
      • Largest Money Managers
      • DC Money Managers
      • DC Record Keepers
      • Largest Hedge Fund Managers
      • World's Largest Retirement Funds
      • Best Places to Work in Money Management
      • Excellence & Innovation Awards
      • WPS Innovation Awards
      • Eddy Awards
    • ETFs
      • Latest ETF News
      • Fund Screener
      • Education Center
      • Equities
      • Fixed Income
      • Commodities
      • Actively Managed
      • Alternatives
      • ESG Rated
    • ESG
      • Latest ESG News
      • The Institutional Investor’s Guide to ESG Investing
      • ESG Sustainability - Gaining Momentum
      • ESG Investing | Industry Brief
      • Innovation in ESG Investing
      • 2023 ESG Investing Conference
      • ESG Rated ETFs
    • Defined Contribution
      • Latest DC News
      • The Plan Sponsor's Guide to Retirement Income
      • DC Money Manager Rankings
      • DC Record Keeper Rankings
      • Innovations in DC
      • Trends in DC: Focus on Retirement Income
      • 2023 Defined Contribution East Conference
    • Searches & Hires
      • Latest Searches & Hires News
      • Searches & Hires Database
      • RFPs
    • Research Center
      • The P&I Research Center
      • Earnings Tracker
      • Endowment Returns Tracker
      • Corporate Pension Contribution Tracker
      • Pension Fund Returns Tracker
      • Pension Risk Transfer Database
    • Careers
    • Events
      • View All Conferences
      • View All Webinars
      • 2023 Canadian Pension Risk Strategies
      • 2023 Retirement Income