Bridges Fund Management has completed the final close of its fifth real estate fund, Bridges Property Alternatives Fund V, at £350m million of equity commitments, exceeding its target size of £300m and reaching its hard cap.
The largest fund Bridges has raised to date, according to a statement. Fund V is almost 60% larger than its predecessor vehicle.
Bridges said Fund V is already over 50% invested or committed – including Bridges’ first real estate deal outside the UK, in Dublin – underlining the strength of its pipeline. 20% of the fund’s current investments have either been pre-sold or forward-funded.
”With Fund V, we aim to continue our track record of delivering strong investor returns – with average realised gross returns in excess of 25% IRR over the past 12 years – alongside positive outcomes for people and the planet,” the company said.
”Fund V is also one of only a few real estate funds to be classified as an Article 9 (or “Dark Green”) Fund under the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation – reserved for managers of assets that are sustainable from the point of acquisition. This is only possible because we are often involved from the start of the development and planning process, allowing sustainability features to be incorporated into the building design.”
Simon Ringer, Head of Bridges Property Funds, said:
“We are delighted to announce this very strong level of investor support for our fifth property fund. Across our platform, we have now completed over 80 transactions, investing both directly and with our highly experienced joint venture partners. We are already ahead of our deployment targets for Fund V having secured 17 transactions, many of which have been completed off market.
By concentrating on our preferred alternative and needs-driven sectors such as low-carbon logistics, healthcare and lower-cost housing, we have been able to generate consistent financial returns – typically well ahead of market benchmarks – whilst also achieving meaningful social and environmental impact. We have always believed that renewing our built environment is a critical part of the transition to a more sustainable and inclusive economy. The support for Fund V is testament to the importance real estate investors are now placing on sustainability and impact factors.”
