Total assets under management (AUM) of 140 global real estate investment managers rose by 15.7% in 2019 to reach €3.2trn according to a joint report by associations ANREV, INREV and NCREIF.
For the fourth consecutive year, Blackstone has maintained its lead position in the annual ranking with €250bn.
The increase was attributed to increased investor inflows and capital appreciation, despite a number companies being unable to respond to the survey because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The other top-five managers – (in descending order) Brookfield Asset Management, PGIM Real Estate, Nuveen and Hines – had more than €100bn of AUM each.
The 10 largest managers account for almost 40% of the total AUM, a trend similar to the previous year. But the overall growth rate for medium and smaller managers exceeded that for larger managers at 18.6% and 11.5%, respectively.
Like previous years, non-listed real estate accounted for most of the total €3.2trn real estate AUM, making up 82.2% or €2.6trn.
A regional breakdown showed that managers focused on North American strategies accounted for 36.6% of the total AUM, while European strategies represented 33.8% and Asia-Pacific 16.7%.
Consolidation continued during 2019, with more than 20% of managers saying they have been involved in mergers and acquisitions in the past decade – the same level as in previous years.
Henri Vuong, INREV’s director of research and market information, said: “The scale and prominence of the largest managers continues apace, but growth across the board is impressive.
“And behind the numbers, there are some interesting stories to tell. The investor-manager hybrid is clearly making its presence felt and we could see much more of this in the future.
“Likewise, appetite for consolidation shows no signs of abating and will likely only accelerate in the current market conditions.”
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