Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) has invested US$400m (€330m) as lead investor of a US$500m equity round of financing by ARA Asset Management.
Makoto Takashima, SMBC’s president and CEO said SMBC’s current medium-term management plan was to focus on “promoting asset light business on a global basis” as part of its growth strategy.
He said SMBC would further strengthen its asset management business by capturing growth in Asian real estate and infrastructure markets.
“ARA has deep expertise and a strong track record in traditional asset classes, such as office, retail and hospitality, along with a robust presence in new economy sectors such as logistics and data centres, which are expected to experience strong growth going forward,” Takashima said.
Justin Chiu, chairman of ARA, said with the new support of SMBC, together with its existing shareholders, the ARA group would further strengthen its core asset management business and bolster its expansion plans in new economy sectors, such as logistics, data centres, infrastructure and private credit, and in key markets globally.
Last week, ARA increased its stake in Kenedix, a Japanese property group, which was privatised by a division of SMBC in a US$1.3bn buyout last November.
Founded in 2002, ARA is the largest real assets manager in Asia Pacific.
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