AEW Europe has raised €820 mln in the final close for Logistis, lifting the logistics platform's total equity to more than €1.3 bn.

AEW Europe has raised €820 mln in the final close for Logistis, lifting the logistics platform's total equity to more than €1.3 bn.

This represents the largest equity raising to date for AEW Europe, the fund manager said.

The new equity has been raised from a number of Asian and European institutional investors, including the Dutch heavyweights APG and PGGM. The capital raised exceeded the original equity target, with the five largest new investors committing in excess of €600 mln in aggregate. Existing investors also increased their investment, committing a further €130 mln.

Logistis’ strategy is to build a portfolio of Grade A logistics parks in prominent locations across the main logistics hubs in Continental Europe. The additional equity raised will be used to grow the platform to more than €2 bn and further expand its European footprint.

AEW Europe has already started Logistis’ expansion into Germany and will seek to complement its existing portfolio through the acquisition of €1.2 bn of existing assets and new logistics parks to be developed with its network of preferred development partners. These new investments will be mainly focused on Germany, Benelux and selected markets in Central Europe.

The Logistis platform was created over 15 years ago and aims to deliver a net income return to investors of approximately 7% over the life of the fund. The current portfolio comprises 21 logistics estates located in France, Germany and Italy, as well as Spain and Belgium, with a total value of €900 mln.

Rob Wilkinson, chief executive Officer of AEW Europe, commented: 'Having been one of the first investment managers to move into the logistics space in 1999, the fact that we have been able to attract such high quality investors is a strong endorsement of the strategy we have been implementing since the creation of Logistis.'

Morgan Stanley was the financial adviser for the capital raising. Clifford Chance acted as legal and tax adviser.