For its Keppel Data Center Fund III (KDCF III), Keppel Education Asset Fund II (KEAF II), and Sustainable Urban Renewal (SUR) strategy, Singapore’s asset manager and operator Keppel Ltd. has obtained nearly S$2 billion ($1.53 billion) in capital commitments from international institutional investors. This amounts to roughly S$4.9 billion ($3.74 billion) in Funds under Management (FUM).
Keppel said in a statement on Monday that KDCF III, the company’s third data center fund, had reached its first close after receiving initial capital commitments of about $580 million from a range of international institutional investors.
KDCF III will draw on Keppel’s deep expertise in developing and operating data centers to invest in a portfolio of sustainable, best-in-class data centers in the Asia Pacific region.
KDCF III will focus on securing pre-commitment or high leasing certainty from hyperscale customers, which would mitigate portfolio leasing risk for investors.
As part of Keppel’s integrated ecosystem, KDCF III will benefit from synergies across Keppel’s operating divisions, such as the sourcing of renewable energy and advanced cooling infrastructure, which are increasingly important to hyper scalers.
Along with Keppel’s proprietary assets, KDCF III will have access to off-market opportunities by leveraging Keppel’s strong customer relationships with hyper scalers.
Keppel has committed about $307 million in capital to KEAF II, achieving the first close.
A returning sovereign wealth fund that had invested in KEAF I has committed capital to KEAF II, and new LPs from the endowment, insurance, and pension sectors have also committed capital.
The Keppel Education Asset Fund series supports early learning, K–12, higher education, tertiary education, and student housing through strategic value-added investments in education-related assets and facilities, with an emphasis on the Asia Pacific area.
“The securing of about S$2.0 billion in capital across Keppel’s flagship funds reflects the resilient demand for high-quality alternative real assets anchored to macrotrends such as climate change and energy transition, urbanization as well as rapid digitalization and the AI wave,
“This significant milestone brings us closer to our interim FUM target of S$100 billion ($76.29 billion) by 2026, with ambitions to reach S$200 billion ($152.58 billion) by 2030,” said Christina Tan, Chief Executive Officer of Fund Management and Chief Investment Officer, Keppel.
“Notwithstanding the current volatile international environment, Keppel is well-positioned to offer both critical solutions that the world needs, and defensive investment products that can help to steady investors’ portfolios,
“We are committed to delivering strong returns to our Limited Partners leveraging Keppel’s deep operating capabilities in sustainability and connectivity solutions,” she added.
With S$760 million ($579.82 million) raised for its SUR strategy, Keppel has now raised roughly S$4.3 billion in total FUM for the strategy [2]. One of the biggest pension funds in Europe recently made a commitment that highlights investors’ ongoing interest in high-quality, sustainable urban renewal assets.
