CapitaLand Investment Said Nearing Buy of $5.2B Fund Manager Amid Australia Push

Singapore’s CapitaLand Investment is reportedly close to acquiring Melbourne-based fund manager Wingate Group, as the Temasek-backed giant carries out a strategic realignment with Australia as a focus market.

The two sides have been in talks for at least three months with a focus on the private credit and commercial property units of Wingate, a 20-year-old firm with A$8 billion ($5.2 billion) in funds under management, according to a Monday article by the Australian Financial Review.

AFR said a deal was originally expected in August but is yet to be signed after talks dragged. The deal size is likely to be comparable to Regal Partners’ A$235 million acquisition of Melbourne-based private credit specialist Merricks Capital in June, the report said.

A CapitaLand representative had no comment on the AFR report when contacted Monday, saying only that the Singaporean firm would “make an announcement when there are material developments.” Wingate had not responded to Mingtiandi’s inquiries at the time of publication.

Rebalancing Act

As part of its Investor Day festivities last week, SGX-listed CapitaLand Investment announced Thursday that it was committing up to A$1 billion to increase its funds under management in Australia and hiring two Credit Suisse veterans to lead the charge.

The firm tapped Angelo Scasserra as CEO of the Australia business and Rahul Bharara as chief investment officer, with the pair set to join from Sydney-based banking startup Barrenjoey in the first half of 2025. The Credit Suisse alums will oversee CapitaLand Investment’s more than A$9 billion in assets under management in Australia.

The Down Under ramp-up comes as CapitaLand Investment plans to triple its funds under management in Japan with the proposed acquisition of Singapore-based SC Capital Partners and reduce its exposure to China after recording a negative 8 percent return on equity in the market last year.

CapitaLand Investment manages 34 logistics properties and business parks and four Grade A office buildings in Australia, where it also has more than 13,500 lodging units across about 150 properties under wholly owned lodging unit The Ascott Ltd. It reached a A$265 million closing of its maiden Australian Credit Program in September with backing from Asian investors.

The firm anticipates a drop in China funds under management to between 10 and 20 percent of total FUM by 2028 — down from 27 percent of the firm’s current S$113 billion in FUM, according to an investor presentation released Friday. The allocation to Australia, Japan and Korea funds is seen rising from 18 percent to between 25 and 35 percent over the same period.

“Our foundation in Asia Pacific has been laid, and we will drive further geographical diversification which is necessary for CLI’s future growth,” CapitaLand Investment CEO Lee Chee Koon said Monday in a release. “We will rebalance our portfolio to grow our India and Southeast Asia businesses, optimise our China portfolio, leverage M&A to grow in our focus markets of Japan, Korea and Australia, and look to ex-Asia developed markets such as the US and Europe next.”

Goldman Shed Tie-Up

Founded by former ANZ private banking head Farrel Meltzer in 2004, Wingate reported a profit of A$9 million at the end of June last year, according to regulatory filings cited by AFR.

Wingate has a A$200 million warehouse funding facility with banking giant Goldman Sachs, AFR reported, and an unnamed North American institutional capital partner injected A$200 million into the company earlier this year.

The Melbourne-based firm initially focused on M&A advisory work and within a few years launched its fund management business and began investing in property debt transactions, according to the company website.