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One of the world’s biggest pension funds struck a trio of partnerships over the last two weeks that will see it invest $1.6B in real estate across the globe.
Korea’s National Pension Service has entered joint ventures to buy stakes in primarily U.S. real estate companies, UK single-family housing and Australian student accommodation. NPS has $815B of assets under management, including about $40B in real estate.
NPS set up a new team dedicated to investing in real estate platforms last year as it looked to expand by backing companies operating in property sectors where it has high conviction.
In the largest of the new partnerships, NPS will invest up to $800M to buy stakes in real estate operating companies and investment managers.
It has teamed up with Almanac Realty Investors, a specialist in buying minority stakes in property operating companies and taking general partner stakes in investment managers. Almanac is a division of investment manager Neuberger Berman.
NPS will commit capital to two of Almanac’s existing strategies and put money into a third in which Almanac will advise on investing in companies identified by NPS.
“As the real estate investment landscape evolves, platform investing has emerged as a transformative trend reshaping the industry,” NPS Real Estate Investment Division Senior Portfolio Manager Insub Park said in a statement.
“This approach not only optimizes value creation but also aligns with long-term growth strategies, making it a cornerstone for forward-thinking investors.”
Earlier this month, NPS became the seed investor in a fund to build single-family rental housing in the UK, to be managed by Long Harbour. NPS’ commitment to the fund is £300M ($370M).
“Our investment in the creation of a platform, designed specifically to deliver new and sustainable single-family homes in the UK, will assist in addressing the chronic undersupply of high-quality homes across the country,” NPS Portfolio Manager David Yoon said in a statement. “We intend to generate significant benefits for both housing providers and prospective tenants, while providing stable and long-term returns.”
Living sectors are set to be a major focus in NPS’ spending. In Australia, it backed Scape, the country’s biggest owner-operator of student housing, providing $434M to invest in student schemes and multifamily assets.
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