ADIA commits $500mn to Kotak’s $1bn realty fund

MUMBAI: Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) has committed a $500-million anchor investment for Kotak Investment Advisors’ (KIAL’s) $1-billion real estate fund.
This is Kotak’s 13th real estate fund that is domiciled in Gujarat’s GIFT City. It will primarily invest in residential properties in India. “This is an opportunistic fund which can invest across various real estate asset classes and capital stack — both debt and equity. The fund will primarily target investments in residential real estate. With the first close of this fund, KIAL has raised about $1.5 billion in real estate across multiple strategies in around one and a half years,” said Kotak Realty Fund CEO Vikas Chimakurthy.
KIAL was set up in 2005 to bring a sharper focus to the group’s private equity business and is registered as an alternate assets business. In June this year, the company had closed its 12th real estate fund for investment in office assets in India. KIAL had formed a $590-million platform with a wholly owned subsidiary of ADIA for this fund, which is also in GIFT City.
With this new fund, KIAL has raised, managed or advised on more than $3.3 billion under its real estate fund series. “This new platform will focus on opportunities associated with long-term demand for Indian office space, which is being driven by global organisations seeking to capitalise on the skilled workforce. It also presents the opportunity to extend our relationship with Kotak, with whom we have successfully invested over years,” said Mohamed AlQubaisi, executive director of real estate investments at ADIA, a sovereign wealth fund owned by the Emirate.