By Simon Jessop LONDON, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Investor Stafford Capital Partners has consolidated assets from three timber funds into a new $1.2 billion fund, retaining nearly three-quarters of existing
Stafford Capital's New $1.2B Timber Fund Aims for 8% Yield
By Simon Jessop
LONDON, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Investor Stafford Capital Partners has consolidated assets from three timber funds into a new $1.2 billion fund, retaining nearly three-quarters of existing investors amid strong institutional demand for the assets.
The Stafford International Timberland Continuation Fund will operate as a perpetual fund and include 74 assets from across Stafford International Timberland (SIT) funds VI, VII and VIII, it said in a statement.
Continuation funds allow managers to keep assets beyond the original fund's life - typically to maintain exposure to strong performers or avoid selling at unfavourable prices.
About 73% of SIT investors rolled over their investment, with fresh capital accounting for 27%. The biggest backer is a group of UK Local Government Pension Funds, which collectively make up 54% of the fund.
"The establishment of the Continuation Fund follows closely behind our $1 billion close of SIT X, our tenth core timberland fund," said Stafford Chief Executive Angus Whiteley, referring to the March fundraising.
"We believe this further signals the growing momentum and institutional interest in timberland as a strategic asset class."
The fund's assets, built up between 2011 and 2018, cover 6.3 million acres of commercial timberland from across the United States, New Zealand, Australia and Latin America, the firm said.
It plans no new acquisitions to the fund and instead will gradually sell down about 28% of the fund, aiming to generate a cash yield of more than 8% over the next decade.
(Reporting by Simon Jessop;Editing by Elaine Hardcastle)
