Keppel Land and two private funds managed by subsidiaries of Keppel Capital have acquired an office building in Seoul, South Korea, for KRW220bn (€159m)
Keppel Land will hold a 39.5% interest in the Samhwan Building, with Keppel Asia Macro Trends Fund IV (KAMTF IV) and KB Bank Discretionary Fund holding 31.1% and 29.4% respectively.
The investment marks Keppel Land’s first foray into South Korea, a Keppel spokesperson told IPE Real Assets, adding that the expected gross internal rate of returns from the investment is expected to be in “the mid-teens”.
Keppel Capital has managed close to S$3.4bn in assets in South Korea since 2004.
Keppel Land said there was an immediate plan to refurbish the building to expand its leasable office space from the existing 31,400sqm.
Christina Tan, CEO of Keppel Capital, said: “As the business and financial hub of South Korea, Seoul has seen rising demand for quality office spaces in the city.” She said Samhwan Building was a uniquely-located prime asset in the heart of the central business district and well-poised to capture this growing demand.
Louis Lim, CEO of Keppel Land, said the joint investment harnessed the Keppel Group’s complementary strengths across real estate solutions and asset management, reinforcing Keppel’s asset-light business model which leveraged third-party funds for growth.
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