Invesco Real Estate is taking over management of a €533m portfolio of value-add assets in Spain, Italy and the UK from Doughty Hanson.

Invesco said the agreement included the addition of eight Doughty Hanson directors in the three countries, which would enable it to increase its “value-add capabilities”.

Doughty Hanson last year announced it was winding down its real estate activity to focus on private equity. It will remain as a general partner.

Speaking to IP Real Estate, Invesco Real Estate managing director Andy Rofe said continuity for investors in the two closed-end funds it will now manage was a priority.

“Keeping the teams in place will give investors continuity and should see little change,” he said.

With Europe’s improving fundamentals, the timing was right, he added, for a move up the risk spectrum.

“There have been isolated opportunities but generally, investors have been risk averse since the global financial crisis,” said Rofe, who envisaged an increased focus on southern Europe in the next three to five years. “We’ve waited a long time for the fundamentals to move in the right direction.”

Invesco, Rofe added, could augment its own coverage – particularly in Italy with the addition of staff in Milan and ability to “interact with the market”.

For the funds themselves, Rofe said there was no urgency to sell properties and Invesco would manage divestment in a timely manner.

Properties from Doughty Hanson’s former Italian platform, Europa Risorse, were recently bought by Benson Elliot as it returns to Italy.

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