AEW Launches a New Pan-European Core Strategy with €410m to Invest

AEW announces the launch of a new pan-European Core strategy with €410 million of equity to invest. Investors include Dutch pension fund Pensioenfonds Metaal en Techniek, advised by MN, alongside a large Swiss public pension fund and other insurers, pension funds, family offices and corporates from France, Germany and Japan.

The strategy will aim to provide stable, long-term income returns by investing in a future-proof diversified portfolio of core office, logistics and residential assets. The team will target investments that meet the changing demand for real estate being brought about by ongoing urbanization, demographic changes and the rise of new technologies. The team will primarily focus on mature and growing markets in Europe’s major cities including in France, Germany and BeNeLux.

AEW is one of the leading investors in core real estate, with 75% of the €70 billion under management classified as core. In Europe, AEW manages over €33 billion of assets, with €27 billion in core assets. With 421 staff based in 12 locations across Europe, AEW is able to leverage its local network to source investment opportunities and implement tailored asset management strategies to enhance operating income, ESG metrics and long-term value.

In line with AEW’s corporate strategy, the new European core approach will have a strong emphasis on ESG, investing in certified assets with good energy efficiency levels, as well as creating sustainable environments. The strategy will also be aligned to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and will participate in GRESB. ESG is central to AEW’s investment and asset management processes, believing that both occupiers and investors will increasingly focus on the environmental impact and energy efficiency of buildings which, in turn, will lead to building obsolescence elsewhere.

Rob Wilkinson, CEO Europe at AEW, commented: “The launch of the strategy is a further demonstration of our commitment to long term investing in Europe and we have deliberately designed the investment strategy to anticipate the future of real estate markets. AEW is now one of the few firms that is able to offer investors access to diversified strategies across the US, Europe and Asia.”

Christina Ofschonka, Senior Fund Manager at AEW, added: “Megatrends are disrupting our sector and are leading to changing requirements for real estate. We will focus on the logistics, residential and office sectors and our strategy is designed to reflect these market changes, whether that is logistics supply chains becoming more localised; changing requirements for residential space; or workspaces evolving to enhance flexibility, collaboration and innovation.”

“Our efforts to deploy capital have begun in earnest and we are already in exclusivity on a number of exciting assets across several European markets, with signing due to occur imminently on the initial acquisitions. We are monitoring a healthy pipeline of investments totalling almost €500 million, as we look to grow the strategy’s portfolio of future proof assets.”