Singapore-based CapitaLand Investment (CLI) has secured S$131 million capital commitment from a new Japanese capital partner, Daibiru Corporation, for its India private fund, CapitaLand India Growth Fund 2 (CIGF2), a release said.
Daibiru Corporation will hold a 25 per cent effective stake in the S$525 million CIGF2, which invests in Grade A business parks in prime locations across gateway cities in India.
Another Japanese firm, Mitsubishi Estate Co holds a 50 per cent stake in CIGF2.
CLI will maintain a sponsor stake in the fund as part of its asset-light growth strategy.
With the investment Daibiru will also take a 25 per cent effective stake in International Tech Park Chennai, Radial Road, located in the business hub of Chennai.
Over time, CIGF2’s portfolio is also expected to include business parks in major metro cities such as Bangalore, Mumbai and Pune.
Daibiru Corporation is a real estate subsidiary of Japanese shipping major Mitsui O.S.K. Lines. The capital commitment will increase CIGF2’s funds under management to more than S$1 billion.
The partnership with Daibiru was an indicator of CLI’s strengths in connecting capital partners with investment opportunities across geographies, said Sanjeev Dasgupta, CEO, CLI India.
“There is increasing demand from multinational corporations and local companies for quality business parks in India due to the rapid growth of the IT / IT-Enabled Services sector and India’s unique strengths as a hub for Global Capability Centres,”said Hardik Gesota, Head, India Private Funds, CLI.
The business parks sector was also one of the most resilient asset classes in India as it provided a stable, recurring income through long-term leases with industry-leading companies, he added.
CLI has a diversified portfolio comprising over 40 IT and business parks, industrial, logistics, lodging and data centre assets across eight cities in India.
CIGF2 is CLI’s second business park development fund in India since the S$300 million Ascendas India Growth Programme, which was fully committed in 2015.
In addition, CLI has closed two logistics private funds in India, the Ascendas India Logistics Programme and CapitaLand Logistics Fund II, with a fund size of S$400 million each.