Guardian selects Renshaw Bay for €420m debt mandate

Guardian Financial Services has selected fixed income specialist Renshaw Bay to manage a £350 mln (€420 mln) commercial real estate debt mandate.

The mandate will diversify Guardian’s fixed income allocation and provide a higher yield by investing in fixed-rate senior loans with maturities of between 5 and 15 years. The loans will be secured against UK office, retail and industrial properties.

Guardian invests predominantly in corporate bonds but does not currently allocate to commercial real estate debt. The life insurer has £13 bn of assets which are managed by several fund managers on behalf of over 600,000 customers.

Jonathan Yates, Chief Executive of Guardian Financial Services, said: 'Commercial real estate debt is an attractive new source of fixed income for us which offers enhanced yields and risk adjusted returns appropriate for our long-dated liabilities.'

Jon Rickert, head of Real Estate Finance at Renshaw Bay, added: 'We continue to see these assets as a large and enduring opportunity for institutional investors and are excited to build and manage Guardian’s portfolio.'