Bahrain sovereign wealth fund eyes UK student housing venture

Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company, the sovereign wealth fund of the Kingdom of Bahrain, has outlined plans to invest in student accommodation in the UK through a partnership with alternative investor Investcorp. Under this potential initiative, Mumtalakat and Investcorp would jointly own an operating platform, created by Investcorp, focusing on investing in and managing UK student housing. The platform would manage an existing portfolio of around 1,200 beds in Nottingham, Bristol, Exeter and Leeds. It would manage the refurbishment and leasing of Investcorp’s houses in multiple occupation assets in the UK and support acquisitions and underwriting. The platform plans to acquire an additional 700 to 1,000 beds annually over the next few years as part of an ambition to become one of the largest operators of HMO student housing in the UK. The news comes as Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the crown prince and prime minister, is on an official visit to the UK to strengthen business ties between the countries. Bahrain is planning to invest £1bn in the UK as part of a potential new trade deal. Mumtalakat chief executive Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa said: “We continue to explore investment opportunities that will add value and grow our portfolio through strategic partnerships. “By joining hands with Investcorp, we believe that we would be able to further establish a best-in-class investment platform that focuses on fulfilling the increasing demand in the UK for student housing.” Investcorp co-chief executive Rishi Kapoor said: “We believe that there is a shortage of well-managed, well-maintained and affordable student HMO assets in major UK university cities. “Our platform seeks to provide a best-in-class service which benefits the students, parents, the university ecosystem and the towns and cities where we have assets, and we believe that it could be further enhanced by a potential partnership with Mumtalakat. “A major component of our investment thesis is a significant upgrade of the asset fabric and improving on the ESG credentials of the assets.” To send feedback, e-mail pui-guan.man@eg.co.uk or tweet @PuiGuanM or @EGPropertyNews