Nuvama and Cushman & Wakefield Join Forces to Launch INR 3000 Cr Realty Fund

Mumbai, January 11, 2024:

In a groundbreaking move, Nuvama Asset Management, the alternative investment arm of Nuvama Wealth Management, and the renowned global real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield have forged a strategic alliance to create a joint venture dedicated to raising a staggering 3,000 crore commercial property fund.

The newly established Category-II Alternative Investment Fund (AIF), boasting a tenure of six years, is poised to empower the collaborative entity to invest in office assets with an approximate value of 76,000 crore, all thanks to project-specific leveraging, as shared by top executives of the joint endeavor.

Transforming India's Commercial Real Estate Landscape

The maiden venture of this historic collaboration, known as the PRIME Offices Fund, has set its sights on investing in top-tier Grade-A offices scattered across key micro markets within six major Indian cities. These cities, namely Bengaluru, the National Capital Region, Pune, Mumbai, Chennai, and Hyderabad, collectively account for more than 70% of the leasing activity within the country. The fund's scope extends to embrace investments in groundbreaking new projects, as well as completed and already leased assets. Currently, it is in the process of securing regulatory approval from the capital market authority.

Anshu Kapoor, the President of Nuvama Asset Management, articulated the immense potential in the Indian office sector, emphasizing its remarkable growth trajectory, which doubles every decade. Kapoor noted that global institutional investors had already set a successful precedent in this sector, whereas domestic investors had lagged behind, often resorting to fragmented ownership models without access to the requisite operational capabilities needed to manage such substantial real assets.

Initially, the joint venture is dedicated to offering lucrative investment opportunities exclusively to domestic investors within the Indian commercial real estate landscape. Anshul Jain, Managing Director for India & Southeast Asia and Head of Asia Pacific Tenant Representation at Cushman & Wakefield, commended the resilience of the Indian office sector and highlighted its remarkable performance over the past two years, nearly reaching pre-Covid levels of net office absorption.

In summary, this strategic partnership between Nuvama and Cushman & Wakefield is poised to revolutionize the Indian commercial real estate market, offering domestic investors a chance to tap into the immense potential of this thriving sector.