Institutional investors have backed Barings to raise $943m (€834.5m) for its first private equity/real assets fund.
The Barings Asset-Based Income Fund (BABIF) received capital commitments from existing and new institutional investors including public and private pensions, insurers, sovereign wealth, family offices, and foundations from the US, Europe and Asia-Pacific.
The manager said the BABIF fund will invest directly in real assets and asset-based businesses designed to “generate current income and opportunities for capital appreciation”.
BABIF has already deployed capital in several of its target markets including aviation leasing, media and entertainment, pharmaceuticals, and financial services, Barings said.
Jon Rotolo, head of Barings’ private equity/real assets team, said: “With BABIF, we’re able to offer clients access to a differentiated opportunity set while drawing upon our deep industry contacts to deploy capital.
“We recognize the challenges our limited partners face in putting money to work and BABIF is on track with its plan for capital deployment.”
Anthony Sciacca, head of Barings Alternative Investments, said: “BABIF addresses a pressing need faced by many institutional investors seeking access to unique real assets opportunities.
“The team’s proven investment strategy along with our ability to identify long-term trends through research makes Barings a compelling partner for investors. This strategy has, and will continue to be, an area of focus and growth for our alternatives business.”
The Barings private equity/real assets team targets direct, control investments in asset-based businesses across infrastructure, intangible assets and natural resources.
Since 2005, the team has deployed $3.8bn of capital into more than 60 investments globally.
