Singapore-based global private equity firm Hillhouse Investment has been selected as the preferred bidder for the acquisition of IGIS Asset Management, South Korea’s largest real estate asset management company.
Korean media reported that Hillhouse outbid its three competitors – two Korean insurance companies and Singapore’s CapitaLand, with an offer of KRW1.1trn (€640m).
IGIS, which was founded in 2010, by the late Kim Dae-young, primarily invests in office buildings, data centres and other commercial real estate in its domestic market. Then in 2012, it made first offshore acquisition in London. It has since invested in other markets like the US and, at the end of December 2024, it had $45.4bn of assets under management.
In response to media queries, Hillhouse said it believed in the potential of the Korean capital market and look forward to building a long-term and constructive partnership through this opportunity.
“Hillhouse approaches this acquisition with a long-term perspective, guided by the principle of supplying patient capital,” it said.
Hillhouse’s jointly-owned Japanese business, Samty Asset Management, will lead the IGIS acquisition. Samty undertakes acquisitions, such as the recently purchase majority interest in Australian student housing operator and developer, UniLodge, for Hillhouse.
Following the selection as the preferred bidder, mandatory regulatory procedures such as the major shareholder eligibility review will take place.
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