Hillhouse’s Rava Buys $100M Dubai School Property From Janus Henderson

Rava Partners has acquired the real estate interest of a Dubai school in a deal that values the property at $100 million, marking the fund manager’s maiden investment in the Middle East.

The real estate division of Hillhouse Investment picked up Hartland International School from a fund managed by London-based Janus Henderson, according to a Thursday announcement. Rava made the purchase through portfolio company Elevate, an education infrastructure specialist, in collaboration with Rava’s India-based operating partner Alta Capital.

For its debut in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC region) comprising Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, Rava targeted the K-12 school with an enrolment of more than 2,050 international students in the Emirati financial hub.

“This acquisition is a strategic milestone for Elevate as they enter the dynamic and growing Middle East market,” said Rava co-head Joe Gagnon. “We see education-focused real assets as a compelling opportunity to capitalise on the GCC region’s growth, driven by strong demographic trends and a robust demand for high-quality educational offerings.”

Campus Activity

Founded in 2015, Hartland International School is set on 9 acres (3.6 hectares) of freehold land in Mohammed Bin Rashid City, roughly 10 minutes by car from the Burj Khalifa skyscraper and central Dubai. The school is under a long-term lease managed by Meraki Education, which also oversees the North London Collegiate School branches in Dubai and Singapore.

Rava and Alta Capital set up Elevate in 2023 to develop and manage premium K-12 schools and student housing facilities. In India, Elevate owns more than 30 education-oriented assets valued at $1 billion and serving more than 90,000 students.

“Hartland International School highlights the exceptional educational infrastructure available in the GCC,” said Sid Gupta, founder and managing partner of Alta Capital, which also manages Rava’s India logistics portfolio. “With our expertise in this niche real asset category, we are well-positioned to identify and invest in more opportunities like this.”

The seller, NBK Capital Partners Real Estate Fund, acquired Hartland in 2018 as the vehicle’s first investment, in a transaction valuing the campus at $95 million. The fund’s manager, a unit of National Bank of Kuwait, was acquired last September by JHEMPIL, a private capital arm of NYSE-listed investment manager Janus Henderson with a focus on emerging markets.

“We are delighted with the successful exit of this asset,” said Yaser Moustafa, head of investments at JHEMPIL. “We are confident in Elevate’s ability to be a valuable long-term partner to Meraki and local businesses in the Middle East. This transaction reflects the growing interest in education infrastructure and the continued strength of institutional demand for alternative assets, including real estate, in the region.”

APAC Empire Grows

Rava Partners has committed more than $3 billion to 18 real estate companies across Asia Pacific, with the Singapore-based fund manager recently taking a majority stake in a rental housing platform that manages about 2,000 rooms across the region.

Rava is committing up to $150 million to expanding Hong Kong-based Dash Living, the companies revealed in April. The announcement came less than two months after Dash grew its Japan presence to 19 locations through deals with US multi-family leader Greystar and asset management titan BlackRock.

“We are particularly enthusiastic about the growth opportunities in Japan where we see strong secular tailwinds and where Dash Living has demonstrated significant value creation for its customers and capital partners,” Rava boss Gagnon said last month.

In January, Hillhouse and Rava completed their JPY 169 billion ($1.1 billion) privatisation of Samty Holdings in partnership with Daiwa Securities Group, gaining control of Japan’s largest residential developer. Hillhouse aims to transform Samty into a property investment platform as the Japanese market continues to command greater attention from international investors.