(Bloomberg) -- St. James’s Place Plc is winding down three UK property funds managing a total of £1.84 billion ($2.3 billion), a year after halting client redemptions during a wider commercial real estate downturn.
It will take about two years for the majority of the assets to be sold, Britain’s largest wealth manager said in an emailed statement on Wednesday. The firm suspended all transactions in its Property Unit Trust and deferred withdrawals and switch-outs in the Property Life and Pension funds in October 2023.
During the period, “investors have remained increasingly cautious about property funds with the significant change in working patterns following the Covid-19 pandemic, which has reduced demand for office space,” according to the statement. Invesco Real Estate will be managing the wind-down of the funds.
The property price correction unleashed by sharply higher interest rates since late 2021 helped expose the liquidity mismatch in funds that invest in buildings that can take months to buy and sell, while ostensibly offering clients the ability to cash in and out quickly. Similar problems were seen during the Brexit referendum and coronavirus pandemic.
A succession of funds catering to UK retail investors have subsequently closed after being overwhelmed by redemption requests at times when property has proven hard to sell.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.