Legal & General (L&G) has secured an initial €600m for its digital infrastructure fund, which targets data centres, fibre, wireless connectivity and cloud services.
The L&G Digital Infrastructure Fund (LDIF) was backed by investors including third-party commitments from local government pension schemes, specialist infrastructure funds and global asset managers, with L&G investing alongside clients via its balance sheet.
The manager said a second close is expected later this year.
LDIF primarily invests in European infrastructure essential to the digital economy, with some focus on global exposure, mainly in the US, L&G said.
Bill Hughes, head of private markets, asset management, L&G, said: “Infrastructure is a key tenet of our expanding private markets platform and a global, generational investment opportunity. As early investors in digital infrastructure, we’ve built strategic partnerships and deployed capital into assets that are essential to economic resilience and long-term productivity.
“This first close adds to the strong momentum across our infrastructure offering, as we continue to back the businesses and assets that will drive the energy transition and digital economy, whilst seeking to deliver long-term value for investors.”
L&G said it has also appointed Jack Colbourne as a non-executive director on LDIF’s investment committee. Colbourne was previously a partner and investment committee chair Arcus Infrastructure Partners. L&G has also hired Achal Arora as managing director – digital infrastructure investments. He joins from Macquarie Asset Management, where he was managing director in the European digital infrastructure team.
Matteo Colombo, head of digital infrastructure investments, asset management, L&G, said: “The launch of our digital infrastructure fund marks a significant next step in our commitment to invest in the infrastructure that underpins the digital economy. From AI and cloud computing, to data sovereignty and connectivity, the demand for robust digital infrastructure is accelerating across Europe.
“We’re leveraging our deep sector expertise, further enhanced with the recruitment of Jack and Achal, and strategic partnerships to identify and scale investments that offer strong long-term value for investors while supporting innovation, inclusion and economic resilience.”
To read the latest IPE Real Assets magazine click here.
