LaSalle Investment Management has raised €600m for a new real estate whole loan lending strategy.
The newly launched LaSalle Whole Loan Strategies programme will focus on originating loans secured against real estate in Western Europe and the Nordics.
The platform, which will target financings between €25m and €100m plus, will originate and hold whole loans with loan-to-values ranging from 70% up to about 80% across various asset types, the manager said.
LaSalle said the strategy’s first investment is a €37m transaction to finance the aggregation of a portfolio of last mile logistics assets located mostly around Paris, France.
LaSalle also issued a €36m whole loan to finance a fully let distribution centre in Belgium and an office asset in Ireland.
The manager said the latest whole loan strategy further enhances LaSalle’s debt investments and special situations platform’s ability to provide financing solutions across the capital stack, including whole loans, mezzanine, development financing, and stretched senior loans.
Ali Imraan, managing director, debt and special situations at LaSalle, said: “We have seen an increasing number of borrowers seeking flexible financing solutions for assets by combing senior and mezzanine loans through the efficiency of whole loans.
“This new programme will allow us to provide borrowers with a truly one-stop financing solution, greatly reducing their execution risk. It is also more efficient compared to a traditional senior and mezzanine solution, particularly for smaller deals.”
While geographically the strategy targets opportunities all across Western Europe, Imraan said there is an initial focus on France, Benelux, Iberia, and Ireland.
