Blackstone Closes Record $20.5B Real-Estate Fund

Blackstone Group Inc. has announced raising the largest-ever real estate fund of $20.5 billion to be invested in property assets around the world. The private equity firm says the figure is $5 billion more than projected.

The firm issued a statement saying that the fund, named Blackstone Real Estate Partners IX (BREP IX), has already made its first investment. The fund is now purchasing U.S. industrial warehouse properties from Singapore-based logistics provider GLP for $18.7 billion, according to the firm.

In recent months, large buyout firms like Blackstone have been attracting a lot of capital from investors seeking higher returns not available in public markets. Accordingly, capital ready to be invested now exceeds $2 trillion, according to data provider Prequin.

Despite reports that there may be a recession around the corner, Blackstone says it deployed a record $56 billion over the past 12 months. The firm's head or real estate and future CEO, Jonathan Gray says is having "no trouble finding things to spend money on." The firm’s success in raising such funds is partly reflective of Blackstone's continual double-digit returns.

In other news, DealBreaker says some private-equity firms are stockpiling cash, possibly in fear of President Trump policies forcing a recession. Blackstone co-founder and current CEO Stephen Schwarzman is a close ally of President Trump.

Blackstone is the world's largest alternative asset manager and one of the biggest property investors, with $154 billion in real estate assets under management.

About Blackstone:

Blackstone is a global leader in real estate investing. Blackstone’s real estate business was founded in 1991 and has $154 billion of investor capital under management. Blackstone is one of the largest property owners in the world, owning and operating assets across every major geography and sector, including logistics, multifamily and single family housing, office, hospitality and retail. Our opportunistic funds seek to acquire undermanaged, well-located assets across the world.

Blackstone’s Core+ strategy invests in substantially stabilized real estate globally through regional open-ended funds focused on high-quality assets, and Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust, Inc. (BREIT), a non-listed REIT that invests in U.S. income-generating assets. Blackstone Real Estate also operates one of the leading global real estate debt businesses, providing comprehensive financing solutions across the capital structure and risk spectrum, including management of Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE: BXMT).