CapitaLand Investment Limited (CLI) has announced a significant move to strengthen its presence in Australia, with the acquisition of the property and corporate credit investment management business of Wingate Group Holdings for A$200 million ($173 million), plus an earn-out.
Upon completion, this acquisition will add A$2.5 billion in funds under management (FUM) to CLI’s existing A$6.4 billion FUM in Australia, increasing its total FUM in the country by 30% to $8.3 billion. This will also contribute to CLI’s 2028 ambition to reach $200 billion in FUM.
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The acquisition is part of CLI’s commitment to invest up to A$1 billion to grow its FUM in Australia, which has become a focus market for the company. This shift in strategy comes after the previous board and management divested its main assets in Australia a decade ago to focus on the then fast-growing China and other overseas markets.
CLI has previously partnered with Wingate, most notably in September when they closed an A$265 million Australia Credit Program (ACP) together. Wingate is known as one of the leading and largest private credit investment managers in Australia, having completed more than 350 transactions worth more than A$20 billion.
According to CLI, the acquisition of Wingate will enable it to expand its proprietary deal origination networks, provide access to more institutional and high-net-worth investors, and increase its geographical exposure to Australia. Paul Tham, CLI’s Group CFO, cites Australia as one of their focus markets, alongside other Asia Pacific markets such as South Korea, India and Japan, where there are also significant private credit opportunities.
CLI notes that the Australian private capital market has grown by 33% in the past 18 months, with assets under management reaching A$139 billion. This trend is expected to continue, with a forecasted A$146 billion commercial mortgage funding gap by 2028. This makes the Australian market an attractive one for CLI to enter.
With Wingate, CLI will further diversify its portfolio, which currently consists of logistics, business parks, offices and lodging assets across nine cities in Australia. As of September 30, CLI manages 34 logistics properties, business parks, and four Grade A office buildings in Australia, as well as over 13,500 lodging units across more than 150 properties under its fully-owned lodging business unit, The Ascott.