$8bn raised by Morgan Stanley

$8bn raised by Morgan Stanley
HONG KONG: Morgan Stanley has raised the biggest property fund ever, an $8 billion warchest aimed mainly at Asian markets including Japan, China and India.

The Morgan Stanley Real Estate Fund VI, supplemented with borrowing, would command spending power of more than $30bn, the US investment bank said.

The move heralds an emergence of giant global property funds, with US private equity firm Blackstone raising $10bn for real estate and Credit Suisse planning a $2.5bn fund.

Separately, Wall Street rival Goldman Sachs has raised a $4bn global property fund, a source familiar with the situation said yesterday.

Morgan Stanley has contributed 20 per cent of the fund's equity, with other US investors pouring in $5bn.

More than 60pc of the fund has been earmarked for Asia, a person familiar with the fund said, with about 30pc destined for Europe. The fund will also invest in other property markets Brazil and Mexico.

Aiming for gross annual returns of more than 20pc, Morgan Stanley has already committed 45pc of the fund's equity, including on the $2.4bn purchase in April of 12 hotels and two property management units from Japan's All Nippon Airways, around two-thirds of the Asia allocation will be spent in Japan.