AXA IM Alts has marked its first investment in Japan’s care home sector with a €156m (¥21.9bn) portfolio acquisition.

AXA IM Alts said it has acquired the portfolio of 15 nursing homes, located across Tokyo, Osaka and Aichi on behalf of its clients.

The portfolio comprises over 800 beds across 15 assets, 14 of which have been constructed after 2013.

This transaction marks the manager’s fourth acquisition in Japan this year, taking the business’ assets under management in the country to around ¥511bn. The deal also forms part of AXA IM Alts’ wider long-term strategy to invest in residential asset classes, supported by strong demographic drivers.

Laurent Jacquemin, the head of Asia-Pacific, real assets at AXA IM Alts, said: “This is a rare opportunity to acquire a modern and diversified portfolio of care home assets with an attractive trading history, in a fast-growing but still highly fragmented use class.

”Establishing long-term relationships with leading operators will allow us to quickly scale our platform, in a sector we view as highly defensive and benefitting from the tailwinds of compelling long-term demand-supply dynamics.”

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