The pension fund for the Dutch metals industry PMT and public transport scheme Rail & OV intend to establish a new asset management company for direct real estate investments, Dutch financial daily Het Financieele Dagblad (FD) reported on Thursday.

The €77bn metals industry scheme and the €22bn transport scheme plan to move all their investments in non-listed real estate in the Netherlands to a new, specialised investment manager, according to a confidential document seen by FD.

A headhunter is currently looking for staff for the new asset manager, which will have about 50 staff, according to the newspaper.

PMT confirmed to IPE Real Assets that it is currently in talks with Rail & OV about a real estate collaboration, but said that the plans still need to be finalised.

The plan of the two pension funds to establish a separate real estate asset manager would not be a first. In the early 2000s, Bpf Bouw, the pension fund for construction workers, spun off Bouwinvest which currently invests over €16bn for several institutional clients.

Blow for MN

The creation of a new real estate asset manager could adversely impact MN, PMT’s asset manager. MN lost the role of pensions administrator for Dutch metals and electronics industries PME back in 2021. Though PME remains as an asset management client for now, it is in the process of revamping its investment strategy.

Last year, MN also saw its emerging market debt team leave to NN IP.

At the end of 2022, MN managed some €2.5bn in direct real estate investments in the Netherlands for PMT. Rail & OV’s Dutch real estate investments amounted to €2.2bn at the end of 2021.

On its website, MN currently has a vacancy for a real estate analyst for direct investments in the Netherlands. 

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