ASK Group's real estate investment arm ASK Property Investment Advisors Pvt Ltd launched a Rs 1,500 crore ($244 million) domestic fund named ASK Real Estate Special Opportunities Fund II. The amount includes a green-shoe option of Rs 500 crore.
The fund will invest mainly in residential projects in six major cities—Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Bangalore, Delhi-NCR and Hyderabad. The fund will also look at distress developers for investments and will purely invest through equity route.
It will be taking a majority stake in the residential projects at the time of investments. The fund will have a tenure of maximum eight years and will invest in special purpose vehicles at an asset or project level.
Sunil Rohokale, managing director and chief executive of ASK Group, said in a statement, “Our previous real estate funds have generated superior returns during tough times. This has encouraged us to launch a larger fund considering the opportunities in the market and investors are willing to invest with a group that has a focused investment strategy with impeccable track record.”
With this fund, ASK Property Investment Advisors aims to achieve an AUM of Rs 4,000 crore over the next one year.
The capital will be raised entirely from domestic institutions and high net-worth individuals. “Our focused strategy of mid-segment residential projects and partnering with regionally strong reputed developers has been appreciated by investors,” said Amit Bhagat, managing director and chief executive of ASK Property Investment Advisors.
ASK Property is also raising a $200 million offshore fund, of which it has raised $50 million so far. The investment firm expects to close the offshore fund in six-eight months and has invested $11 million out of it so far.
“India's riskiness has gone down significantly in 2014 but the real money from offshore will start coming in only from early 2015,” Rohokale said.
(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)
