By: Property Week
Private equity real estate concern joins forces with Peterson Group and launches new European fund.
Queensgate Investments has doubled its spending power to £1.5bn after securing equity investment from Hong Kong-based investment house Peterson Group, Property Week can reveal.
The private equity real estate investment adviser, set up by Jason Kow and LJ Group, has joined forces with Peterson Group in a bid to dramatically increase the size of its fund and launch the Queensgate Investments Fund II (QIF II), a pan-European investment vehicle.
QIF II said the fund would focus on assets providing “predictable income and multiple value-add opportunities”. The company believes QIF II will complement and supplement the equity in QIF I.
Kow, chief executive of Queensgate, told Property Week: “Partnering with flexible, nimble and long-term investor like Peterson is a strategic move for Queensgate, not only in terms of greater equity firepower but also the ability to acquire larger and more exciting opportunities.”
Peterson Group already has investments in Asia, North America and the UK. It has a diversified strategy to invest in asset classes including hotel, office, residential and retail investments, and its current assets include LFK Tower in Hong Kong, and the Ampersand building in London’s Wardour Street.
So far, Queensgate, which was set up in March 2012 with an initial £500m of equity, has bought £800m of assets, including the development by the O2 arena on London’s Greenwich Peninsula of the 452-bed Inter-Continental London The O2 Hotel and adjoining conference centre, which is set to become Europe’s largest. The company has also acquired more than 140 apartments.
Queensgate also controls Executive Offices Group, the leading five-star serviced-office business in central London, which owns and manages 30 serviced office buildings in Mayfair, Belgravia, Midtown and the City.
Major assets include SW1 properties at 33 St James’s Square, 78-79 Pall Mall, and 2 Eaton Gate, West End building 53 Davies Street and 1 Cornhill, in the City.