EQT Raises €1 Billion for New Real Estate II Fund

The Swedish venture capital company EQT has today announced that it has raised €1 billion to invest in “high-conviction, value-add investment opportunities primarily in the logistics and residential real estate sectors”. Having last month bought controlling stakes in southern European portal behemoth idealista as well as #3 Italian portal company Casa.it via its IX fund, the firm has now raised its second fund specifically destined for real estate investments.

The money for EQT Real Estate II has reportedly come from both new and existing blue-chip investors and in terms of the amount raised is both 2.5 times larger than its preceding fund and well above its initial target of €750 million. The fund will follow a ‘local with locals’ strategy and rely on a team of 25 investment professionals located around Europe and is apparently already looking closely at opportunities in Germany, Spain Italy, and Benelux.

Speaking about the fundraising for EQT Real Estate II, CEO Christian Sinding said:

"Real estate is one of the most exciting growth areas for EQT and the success of this fundraise is a reflection of EQT Real Estate's ability to source attractive opportunities and then develop sustainable, future-proofed assets, while delivering strong results to its investors. We look forward to continuing to build on that success."

With portal stock prices and valuations across the world seeing something of a purple patch, the fund may look to add more portal assets to EQT’s roster as part of a drive to invest in “equity investments ranging in size from EUR 40 million up to EUR 200 million.” perhaps even forming a block of property portals to rival those controlled by the likes of Axel Springer.