Mapletree Investments Raises $1.8B in Equity for Latest Fund

1089 E. Mill, San Bernardino, Calif., is one of the distribution warehouses held by MUSEL in the US. Image courtesy Mapletree Investments Pte. Ltd.

Mapletree Investments Pte. Ltd., of Singapore, has closed its MUSEL Private Trust at about $1.8 billion in total fund equity. MUSEL is a fully invested yielding portfolio that holds 262 logistics assets across 26 states in the U.S. and 20 cities across seven European countries at a total investment value of $4.3 billion.

READ ALSO: China’s Lessons Offer Hope for US Logistics

The trust will be managed by Mapletree Real Estate Advisors Pte. Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Mapletree Investments, which will retain a 34 percent stake in MUSEL. This reportedly is similar to the company’s approach with other sponsored private funds such as Mapletree Australia Commercial Private Trust, Mapletree Global Student Accommodation Private Trust and Mapletree’s four Singapore-listed REITs.

Inwestycyjna 1, Gluchow, is one of the logistics assets held by MUSEL in Poland. Image courtesy of Mapletree Investments Pte. Ltd.

MUSEL has a total of about 56 million square feet, an overall average portfolio occupancy of 94.3 percent and a weighted average unexpired lease term of 4.4 years. The tenant base reportedly is well diversified with consumer goods, third-party logistics and e-commerce tenants comprising two-thirds of the portfolio by leasable area.

MUSEL’s U.S. properties are strategically located close to population and consumption centers in states such as California, Texas, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, as well as key logistics and transportation hubs in the Midwest. In Europe, the portfolio is diversified across 20 cities in seven countries, including Poland, France, Germany and Spain.

Strong, possibly slowing

Mapletree Investment CEO Mr. Hiew Yoon Khong noted in a prepared statement that despite a challenging macroeconomic global situation, investors remain attracted to the logistics sector’s strong fundamentals.

After a slowish start to 2019, logistics space absorption in Europe picked up enough to stabilize the market by year’s end, according to a February report from JLL. Though logistics development in Europe remains at record levels, increasing difficulty finding suitable development sites could lead to lower deliveries this year.

Mapletree has had more than its share of giga-deals recently. Last April, New York Life Real Estate Investors put up two loans totaling $915.2 million, secured by a Mapletree industrial portfolio of 100 industrial buildings across the U.S. and comprising 17.2 million square feet. And in a $1.4 billion deal in September, Mapletree Investments agreed to purchase from Digital Realty a portfolio of 10 data centers