Keppel Corporation funds have acquired an office tower in Seoul, bringing the total of deals closed in South Korea since 2021 to KRW1.4trn (€986m).
The group has flagged its intention to invest a further S$3bn (€2bn) in Seoul over the next three years.
Keppel’s private fund, Keppel Asia Macro Trends Fund IV (KAMTF IV) has partnered with a Korean financial institution under a sidecar arrangement known as Co-Investment Programme, to buy the Bank of Korea’s Sogong Annex Facility.
KAMTF IV and its partner will each hold an effective 50% interest in the 13-storey office building with parking facilities.
Louis Lim, CEO of the real estate division of Keppel Corporation, said the building would be retrofitted with the latest amenities and building standards.
“Similar to how we are refurbishing Samhwan Building, acquired last year jointly with Keppel’s private funds, we will leverage digital technologies to retrofit and future-proof the Sogong Annex Facility,” he said.
Robert Sung, chief representative in Korea for Keppel Corporation, said: “South Korea is a market with strong fundamentals, where Keppel sees tremendous opportunities.
“We expect to invest some S$3bn over the next three years across real estate, particularly where we can leverage Keppel’s value-add capabilities, as well as infrastructure assets.”
Keppel currently manages a diverse portfolio of close to KRW2.6trn in assets in South Korea, including the latest Sogong Annex Facility, the 15-storey Samhwan Building in Seoul, and a waste management company, Eco Management Korea Holdings, which were acquired last year.
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