Latest news with #GawCapitalPartners
Al Etihad
13-05-2025
- Business
- Al Etihad
Aldar sells 'Mamsha Gardens' building to 'GAW Capital Partners' for Dh586 million
13 May 2025 14:37 ABU DHABI (WAM)Aldar Properties has completed the sale of a residential building at Mamsha Gardens to Hong Kong-based real estate private equity firm GAW Capital Partners for Dh586 GAW Capital's first investment in the UAE, the transaction underscores the growing international appeal of Abu Dhabi's property market, the Saadiyat Cultural District, and Aldar's residential within Saadiyat Cultural District, the building, one of seven within the Mamsha Gardens development, comprises 71 apartments and townhouses with a total sellable area exceeding 16,000 square interest from Asia-based investors highlights the strong demand for Abu Dhabi real estate amongst international buyers, supported by Aldar's sustained engagement with this investor base to showcase high-quality developments, attractive investment opportunities, and refined customer from China and Hong Kong accounted for Dh1.5 billion of Aldar's total UAE development sales in 2024, representing more than a 30-fold increase compared to strong momentum continued into the first quarter of 2025, with Dh1.3 billion in sales already recorded. This sharp acceleration reflects rising demand from both overseas and resident Chinese and Hong Kong buyers, and underscores Abu Dhabi's increasing appeal to a strategically important and emerging segment of international Al Omaira, Acting Director-General of Abu Dhabi Real Estate Centre (ADREC), commented, 'Abu Dhabi continues to strengthen its position as a preferred destination for international real estate investment, driven by a robust regulatory framework, economic stability, and a growing pipeline of high-quality assets. The entry of new global investors reflects the maturing landscape of the emirate's real estate sector and highlights the confidence in Abu Dhabi as a long-term, value-driven market.'Talal Al Dhiyebi, Group Chief Executive Officer at Aldar Properties, said, 'This transaction underscores the strength of Aldar's development platform and the growing appeal of Abu Dhabi's increasingly mature real estate market to global investors - in the first quarter of 2025, 87 percent of Aldar's UAE sales came from international entry of Gaw Capital Partners, a leading Asia-based investor – making its first investment in the UAE – reflects Abu Dhabi's economic growth expectations and its status as a go-to investment destination, where value continues to be driven by robust economic fundamentals, attractive demographics and high-quality assets.'Christina Gaw, Managing Principal of Global Head of Capital Markets and Co-Chair of Alternative Investments at Gaw Capital Partners, said, 'This landmark investment reflects our positive view of the dynamic Middle East market, its potential for growth and innovation, and our trust in Aldar as a leading UAE developer. We are committed to leveraging our expertise to drive value creation and sustainable development in the region.' The transaction demonstrates Aldar's continued ability to partner with an increasingly diverse range of international players and attract international capital flows across its platform.
The Star
07-05-2025
- Business
- The Star
Private credit firms eye new funds for HK property
AS valuations fall and banks pare exposure, some private credit firms are stepping in to invest in large commercial properties and developers in Hong Kong with plans for new fund launches for one of the world's most expensive real estate markets. Gaw Capital Partners and Blue Mountain Bridge Capital are among those looking to launch new funds for the Asia-Pacific region, including Hong Kong, despite the heightened market volatility induced by US President Donald Trump's trade wars. In Hong Kong, in particular, access to private credit would be a major, though short-term, relief for many of the developers as anxiety grows about their ability to service debt at a time when both demand and prices have been on a downward trajectory. While the city has remained unscathed by a destabilising property crisis in mainland China, concerns have swirled about the financial health of a few developers amid rising economic and sector headwinds. Private credit funds, specialised lenders that finance companies and projects, have boomed into a US$2 trillion industry globally, luring big-time investors as well as wealthy individuals targeting higher yields. Moreover, some private credit investors could also potentially profit in a default scenario if they manage to sell the collateral at a price higher than their lending, subject to market conditions. Blue Mountain Bridge, a Hong Kong-based private credit firm, is in the market to raise US$250mil in its first fund with the aim of securing US$150mil by the end of 2025, chief investment officer Raymond Chan said. 'This is the best time to be a private credit investor in Hong Kong,' he said. In January, Chan's fund closed a US$33.4mil one-year senior loan secured by a newly converted office property in Hong Kong, which pays an annual coupon of 15% and has a loan-to-value ratio of 63%. In December, Blue Mountain exited a US$64.1mil senior one-year loan. That loan to a developer for refinancing reaped an internal rate of return (IRR), a key gauge of profitability, of 15%, Chan said. The pay-off is higher than the average net IRR of 11.9% recorded by private credit and direct lending funds over the 2018 to 2023 years, considered a solid performance, according to a S&P Global report last year. Gaw Capital, a Hong Kong-based real estate private equity fund with US$34.4bil assets under management, is launching a new fund targeting commitment of US$2bil, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. The fund will invest in both private credit and private equity deals in tier-one and two cities in Asia-Pacific, including Hong Kong, said the person, who declined to be named because the information is not yet public. Gaw declined to comment. Sun Hung Kai & Co, a local alternative investment company, launched a new business by co-investing in a US$100mil residential mortgage portfolio from developers in November, and it will close another portfolio soon. 'We've seen both so-called distressed developers and high-quality, low-geared developers approaching us for cashflow or to optimise the usage of balance sheet,' said Gigi Wong, the firm's managing director. 'And there are Hong Kong banks approaching us to sell their secondary loan or problematic loan.' Liquidity problems The private credit interest comes against the backdrop of liquidity problems in major city developer New World Development and its smaller peers, triggering concerns of a potential domino effect across the entire sector. Sliding property sales and rentals as well as high vacancies and interest rates are eroding landlords' ability to service debt, Moody's said in a report in February, prompting banks to scale back both new financing and refinancing to the sector. Total loans for property development and investment have been declining since 2022, and are down 12.6% year-on-year at the end of 2024, according to the data compiled by the city's de-facto central bank, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. 'When you have a loan coming due, in today's market, it's very, very hard to get that refinancing done,' said Edwin Wong, partner and head of Asia Credit at Ares Management, a private credit firm. Breathing room 'We may look at the group level and say, hey, this is something we can think about – to give them that breathing room to ride out the current environment.' The firm is looking at all debt opportunities, from senior to junior. Commercial property has been the worst affected in Hong Kong with record vacancy rates of close to 20%, hurt by an oversupply and grim economic outlook, and prices have dropped 40% since the 2019 peak, according to CBRE data. Some distressed commercial properties were transacted last year at 60% lower than peak prices. CBRE estimated the funding gap – driven by changes in capital values due to repricing and rental adjustments – in Hong Kong between 2025 and 2027 to be US$720mil across the office, industrial and retail sectors. Besides asset managers and investment firms, family offices and wealthy individuals are entering the private credit market, attracted by higher yields compared with direct investment in the real estate market, law firm JSM partner Jasmine Chiu said. Due to growing competition, interest rates for private credit have come down to the high single and low double digit ranges, from mid-high teens in 2023. However, some firms are not rushing into deals, said market participants, as they are wary of gaps in valuation expectations and the risks involved. Exercise caution Raffles Family Office's head of investment advisory Sky Kwah said investors should exercise more caution when they structure deals, to look for lower loan-to-values, tighter covenants and more equity cushion. Otherwise, Kwah said, the private credit firms could take a hit if the property market faces further corrections. Because of the growing competition among private credit funds, 'some lenders may be forced to accept looser covenants or lower quality collateral to deploy the capital,' he said, adding borrowers with weaker fundamentals may pose risks. —Reuters Clare Jim and Kane Wu write for Reuters. The views expressed here are the writer's own.
The Hindu
07-05-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Private credit firms eye new funds for Hong Kong property as banks step aside
Gaw Capital Partners and Blue Mountain Bridge Capital are among those looking to launch new funds for the Asia Pacific region, including Hong Kong, despite the heightened market volatility induced by U.S. President Donald Trump's trade wars. In Hong Kong, in particular, access to private credit would be a major, though short-term, relief for many of the developers as anxiety grows about their ability to service debt at a time when both demand and prices have been on a downward trajectory. While the city has remained unscathed by a destabilising property crisis in mainland China, concerns have swirled about the financial health of a few developers amid rising economic and sector headwinds. Private credit funds, specialised lenders that finance companies and projects, have boomed into a $2 trillion industry globally, luring big-time investors as well as wealthy individuals targeting higher yields. Moreover, some private credit investors could also potentially profit in a default scenario if they manage to sell the collateral at a price higher than their lending, subject to market conditions. Blue Mountain Bridge, a Hong Kong-based private credit firm, is in the market to raise $250 million in its first fund with the aim of securing $150 million by the end of 2025, chief investment officer Raymond Chan said. "This is the best time to be a private credit investor in Hong Kong," he said. In January, Chan's fund closed a $33.4 million one-year senior loan secured by a newly converted office property in Hong Kong, which pays an annual coupon of 15% and has a loan-to-value ratio of 63%. In December, Blue Mountain exited a $64.1 million senior one-year loan. That loan to a developer for refinancing reaped an internal rate of return (IRR), a key gauge of profitability, of 15%, Chan said. The payoff is higher than the average net IRR of 11.9% recorded by private credit and direct lending funds over the 2018 to 2023 years, considered a solid performance, according to a S&P Global report last year. Gaw Capital, a Hong Kong-based real estate private equity fund that has $34.4 billion assets under management, is launching a new fund targeting commitment of $2 billion, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. The fund will invest in both private credit and private equity deals in tier-1 and 2 cities in Asia Pacific, including Hong Kong, said the person, who declined to be named because the information is not yet public. Gaw declined to comment. Growing competition Sun Hung Kai & Co, a local alternative investment company, launched a new business by co-investing in a $100 million residential mortgage portfolio from developers in November, and it will close another portfolio soon. "We've seen both so-called distressed developers and high-quality, low-geared developers approaching us for cashflow or to optimize the usage of balance sheet," said Gigi Wong, the firm's managing director. "And there are Hong Kong banks approaching us to sell their secondary loan or problematic loan." The private credit interest comes against the backdrop of liquidity problems in major city developer New World Development and its smaller peers, triggering concerns of a potential domino effect across the entire sector. Sliding property sales and rentals as well as high vacancies and interest rates are eroding landlords' ability to service debt, Moody's said in a report in February, prompting banks to scale back both new financing and refinancing to the sector. Total loans for property development and investment have been declining since 2022, and are down 12.6% year-on-year at the end of 2024, according to the data compiled by the city's de-facto central bank, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. "When you have a loan coming due, in today's market, it's very, very hard to get that refinancing done," said Edwin Wong, partner and head of Asia Credit at Ares Management, a private credit firm. "We may look at the group level and say, hey, this is something we can think about - to give them that breathing room to ride out the current environment." The firm is looking at all debt opportunities, from senior to junior. Commercial property has been the worst affected in Hong Kong with record vacancy rates of close to 20%, hurt by an oversupply and grim economic outlook, and prices have dropped 40% since the 2019 peak, according to CBRE data. Some distressed commercial properties were transacted last year at 60% lower than peak prices. Valuation gaps CBRE estimated the funding gap - driven by changes in capital values due to repricing and rental adjustments - in Hong Kong between 2025 and 2027 to be $720 million across the office, industrial and retail sectors. Besides asset managers and investment firms, family offices and wealthy individuals are entering the private credit market, attracted by higher yields compared to direct investment in the real estate market, law firm JSM partner Jasmine Chiu said. Due to growing competition, interest rates for private credit have come down to the high single and low double digit ranges, from mid-high teens in 2023. However, some firms are not rushing into deals, said market participants, as they are wary of gaps in valuation expectations and the risks involved. Raffles Family Office's head of investment advisory Sky Kwah said investors should exercise more caution when they structure deals, to look for lower loan-to-values (LTVs), tighter covenants and more equity cushion. Otherwise, Kwah said, the private credit firms could take a hit if the property market faces further corrections. Because of the growing competition among private credit funds, "some lenders may be forced to accept looser covenants or lower quality collateral to deploy the capital," he said, adding borrowers with weaker fundamentals may pose risks. (Reporting by Clare Jim, Kane Wu, and Summer Zhen in Hong Kong; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee and Shri Navaratnam)
Bloomberg
25-04-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Gaw Capital Targets $2 Billion for New Real Estate Fund
Hong Kong-headquartered real estate investment firm Gaw Capital Partners is targeting $2 billion in commitments from investors for its new Gateway Real Estate Fund VIII, according to people familiar with the matter. Gaw Capital's latest fund aims to invest in both private credit and private equity deals in Asia Pacific, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the matter is private. Gaw has raised seven Gateway funds with combined equity commitments of more than $13.6 billion in more than 92 investments, according to its website.
Bloomberg
14-04-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Gaw Capital's Hong Kong Towers Loan Gets Extended by a Month
Hong Kong-based investment firm Gaw Capital Partners ' syndicated loan backing two office towers has been extended by a month, according to people familiar with the matter, as talks with banks on a refinancing proposal continue. All banks have agreed to extend the maturity of a HK$10.3 billion ($1.3 billion) loan due early April to May 9, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private matters. BNP Paribas SA, Hang Seng Bank Ltd., Standard Chartered Plc and United Overseas Bank Ltd. are among the largest lenders of the borrowing, which backs Cityplaza Three and Cityplaza Four, both located in Hong Kong's eastern Taikoo area.
