Finland’s biggest pensions insurer, Ilmarinen has revealed it invested in the Greystar Australia Multifamily Venture I (GAMV I) investment vehicle, which is targeting Australia’s rental housing market.
Ilmarinen is the third investor in the A$1.3bn (€830m) four-way partnership behind the Greystar vehicle, alongside Dutch pension fund manager APG and Ivanhoé Cambridge.
Last month when his firm was announcing the second and final close of GAMV I, Chris Key, managing director, Greystar Australia, told IPE Real Assets only that the unnamed partner was a “large European” pension fund.
Mikko Antila, head of international real estate at Ilmarinen, said: “This investment in Australia’s rental residential markets is well in line with Ilmarinen’s strategy to increase the international diversification of its real estate portfolio in a profitable, secure and sustainable manner.”
He said the €54bn Helsinki-based pension provider saw a lot of potential in Australia’s rental housing market for institutional investors.
“This new partnership gives us the opportunity to benefit from the growing popularity of and demand for purpose-built rental housing in Australia, particularly in the Sydney and Melbourne metropolitan areas, together with an experienced manager and investor partners,” Antila said.
He told IPE Real Assets that Ilmarinen’s investment in GAMV I was “significant”, but that the firm had not disclosed a figure.
Greystar announced in mid-February it had raised A$1.3bn for GAMV I, having raised A$370m a year before from APG, the first investor in the partnership.
Greystar said at the time that it had a modest stake in the venture.
Antila said this was Ilmarinen’s first “meaningful” investment in Australian real estate, although the institution did have some minor indirect exposure to property in the country.
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