RLI Investors launch European last-mile fund, opens Berlin branch

Independent German logistics fund manager RLI Investors said it plans to launch a European last-mile fund later this year, following major growth last year which saw it growing its portfolio to beyond the €1bn mark.

Peter Wenzel, managing director of RLI Investors, said, ‘We aim to continue to grow in 2020. The fund will invest in city 'last-mile' hubs in the core of Europe, with an absolute focus on Germany. With this in mind, we have further expanded our team of international real estate experts.’

The group will handle its expanding asset management business from two locations in Germany - its main office in Munich and a newly-opened branch office in Berlin, along with several new staff hires. 

Umut Ertan, founder and partner of RLI Investors, commented on how RLI approached the newly-planned fund. “The RLI group has its own high-performance project development division RLI Development with in-house architecture and civil engineering services as well as a property development pipeline of over two million square meters.”

Last year RLI increased its logistics property and fund AUM by nearly 24% to more than €1bn. It bought eleven logistics properties, worth around €156m, for its open-end special real estate fund “RLI Logistics Fund – Germany II”, acting on behalf of national and international asset managers. The properties, some of which were acquired in off-market deals, include three development projects with around 39,000 sqm of new construction. Located in logistic cluster regions around Germany, including Berlin, Rhine-Main, Leipzig and Munster/Osnabrück, the assets are let on long leases “to top covenants, including ECP service providers and contract logistics companies.”

By the end of last year, RLI had a total lettable area of 1.26 million sqm under management, spread over 38 properties in Germany,  that are up to 99% let. The company said that Leases and amendments on a total area of 220,500 square metres were concluded in the calendar year 2019. It also initiated development projects with a total of 45,000 sqm in the period.