The London Fund, a real assets vehicle set up by UK local government pension schemes (LGPS), is joining a consortium of investors in one of the UK’s largest build-to-rent (BTR) housing platforms.
The fund, set up last year to invest in Greater London housing and infrastructure, has been boosted with a £50m (€57.6m) commitment from the London Pension Fund Authority (LPFA) and will invest in DOOR, an investment fund that owns part of housing developer Get Living.
The new commitment from LPFA follows an initial investment of £100m late last year, bringing The London Fund to £150m.
The London Fund is managed Local Pensions Partnership Investments (LPPI) – which manages investments on behalf of LPFA and other LGPS funds – in partnership with London CIV, another LGPS pooling company.
DOOR is an investment fund sponsored by the Oxford Properties and Delancey and owns part of Get Living, the company that manages large-scale London housing developments, including the former Olympic Village in Stratford and Elephant & Castle.
Get Living is also owned by Dutch pension fund investment manager APG and state-owned Qatari Diar.
Other investors in DOOR include Swedish pension fund Alecta and Allianz Real Estate.
LPPI made a £150m in investment in DOOR last year, although this was not on behalf of The London Fund. LPPI also manages investments on behalf of the Lancashire County Pension Fund and the Royal County of Berkshire Pension Fund.
The London Fund is designed to invest in BTR and affordable housing, community regeneration, digital infrastructure and clean energy in the UK capital.
Robert Branagh, CEO of LPFA, said: “We firmly believe that The London Fund provides a great way for us to deliver for our fund members and provide a direct benefit to communities in London.
“Residential housing stock is one of the most pressing issues facing The City of London, so long-term, sustainable investment opportunities like that provided by DOOR can be a significant part of the solution.”
Chris Rule, CEO of LPPI, said: “The London Fund is a unique partnership between local government pension schemes and pools to create sustainable and resilient assets that will provide value for our pensio-scheme members over the long term and at the same time offer focused investment opportunities that benefit local communities.
“Supporting large-scale residential property projects is an important part of our investment strategy, and this investment will help deliver the ongoing stewardship of high-quality, affordable and professionally-managed homes.”
Mike O’Donnell, London CIV’s CEO, said: “I am very pleased to be working in partnership with LPPI and LPFA on this important development that seeks to deliver both good financial returns and wider social benefits. We are hopeful of further investment from our London borough client funds later this year.”
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