Aberdeen Standard Investments has launched a global private markets fund with seed capital from a Standard Life pension fund.
The open-ended Global Private Markets Fund (GPMF) will invest in infrastructure, real estate, private credit and private equity and has been designed as “one-stop” solution for pension funds seeking private markets exposure.
The fund has £138m (€156m) of seed money from a Standard Life pension fund and is aimed at small and medium-sized defined-benefit pension schemes, defined-contribution pension schemes and private banks.
Aberdeen Standard Investments is targeting annual returns of between 9% and 12%, net of fees, over a rolling seven-year period.
Nalaka De Silva will manage the fund and head a team of 10 professionals in Edinburgh, London, Boston and Singapore.
Aberdeen Standard Investments said the fund will invest in businesses and projects that play an important role in growing and sustaining regional or global economies.
Investments for the fund will include social and economic infrastructure projects, such as schools, hospitals, transport and energy assets.
The fund will also invest across a range of commercial and residential real estate sectors, lend to business and projects, and provide venture capital.
The launch comes less than 12 months after Aberdeen Standard Investments was created through the merger of Standard Life and Aberdeen Asset Management.
Peter McKellar, the global head of private equity and infrastructure equity at Aberdeen Standard Investments, said: “As Aberdeen Standard Investments, we now have the breadth and depth of expertise that allows us to offer a fund across the spectrum of private markets.
“We can also manage asset allocation to ensure we are targeting the best opportunities at any given time – with a robust governance framework which takes the burden away from investors.”
McKellar said the fund could be especially beneficial for smaller pension schemes with less capacity to manage private market investments themselves, as well as other institutional investors and private banks looking for a high level of long-term growth to meet their liabilities.
