Cain completes £500m PBSA forward funding deal

Cain International has completed a £500m PBSA forward-funding deal to support the delivery of 2,389 student beds across major UK university cities. The deal marks the first investment in UK purpose-built student accommodation by Israeli insurance firm Menora Mivtachim Group, which has invested in Cain’s existing UK PBSA platform with developer Fusion Group. Cain has also added a new development partner, Olympian Homes. With Olympian, Cain will deliver two PBSA schemes, the 45-storey Cirrus Point in Leeds and the 275-bed Rialto House in York. Cirrus Point will provide 660 beds across 255,000 sq ft, making it the tallest PBSA building in the world and the tallest building in Leeds. It is due for completion in 2026. With Fusion, Cain is delivering a further three schemes in Liverpool, Nottingham and Manchester. All five schemes have already secured planning consent. Richard Pilkington, senior managing director and head of European real estate at Cain, said: “This is an important milestone for our beds strategy and further demonstrates our confidence in the sector’s attractive fundamentals and potential for growth with reputable developers. With over 350,000 beds needed nationally to meet the expected demand across the UK’s largest university cities, we believe there is significant opportunity in this market and look forward to delivering and expanding on our strategy through new and existing partnerships.” Cain International was advised by Cushman & Wakefield, Colliers, Herbert Smith Freehills and Allen & Overy. Olympian Homes was advised by JLL. Menora was advised by Greenberg Traurig. Apollo was advised by Gibson Dunn. Fusion was advised by Mishcon De Reya. To send feedback, e-mail piers.wehner@eg.co.uk or tweet @PiersWehner or @EGPropertyNews