European Placement Agent for £300m Legal & General UK Property Income Fund
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The Challenge
In March 2009 C&W was appointed by Legal & General Property (LGP) as sole European Placement Agent for its new flagship UK Property Income Fund (UK PIF). This diversified Core / Core-plus Fund, targeting larger assets of £40m+, is the first LGP product to be structured to allow non-UK investors.
The Solution
The assignment involved a full spectrum of product development and equity raising services:
- Commercial advice throughout structuring and product development phase.
- Development of fund model and preparation of online data room.
- Co-ordination of extensive marketing campaign across continental Europe.
- Assistance throughout investor due diligence and closing process, including strategic advice during commercial negotiations with cornerstone investors.
The Results
The Fund features an innovative structure that enables investors to choose their preferred level of gearing through parallel geared and un-geared partnerships. C&W was involved in the development of this structure, helping to ensure it was robust, simple, cost effective, and attractive to investors and lenders alike.
The Fund achieved a first close in March 2010 and by final close in September 2011 it had secured capital commitments of c. £300m from 14 investors across Europe, Asia, the Middle East and North America. Allowing for gearing, the Fund has a total investment capacity of c.£475m. On the back of this success, C&W was shortlisted for the 2011 PERE European Placement Agent of the Year award.