AXA to liquidate its EUR 350m Immosolutions fund

AXA Investment Managers Deutschland has announced that it is to liquidate its EUR 350 mln German open-ended Immosolutions real estate fund. All eight properties in the fund will be sold by 11 May 2015, AXA said in a statement.

'AXA IM Deutschland has tried several solutions, including reopening with a lock-in, converting to a spezialfond and adopting the new German Investment Act fund structure with a 12-month notice period for redemptions,' a spokesman said.

'In all cases the majority of shareholders were happy to proceed, but unfortunately the 100% commitment received could not be reached so there is now no other option than to liquidate the fund and achieve the best possible value for shareholders,' he added.

AXA is just the latest in a line of German fund managers to announce that funds will be liquidated this month.

On 21 May, Credit Suisse announced that it would liquidate its EUR 6 bn CS Euroreal fund, following a two-year freeze. It re-opened for one day of trading bur rapidly shut the fund down after too many investors opted to redeem their shares.

Credit Suisse’s decision to dissolve Euroreal came just days after SEB Asset Management also took the decision to wind down its EUR 6.3 bn ImmoInvest fund. Like Credit Suisse, it opened the fund for one day of trading following a two-year freeze, but was also forced to pull the plug after too many investors opted to redeem their shares.

AXA’s announcement takes the tally of German open-ended funds in the process of being liquidated to nine - with combined AUM of around EUR 22 bn, according to the BVI. An additional five funds, including SEB's EUR 284 mln Global Property fund, remain frozen. Together, all German open-ended funds held combined AUM of EUR 85.3 bn as of end-March 2012.