Hot on the heels of completing the $5.2 billion acquisition of Singapore-based ARA Asset Management in January, ESR Cayman continues to expand with the purchase of a portfolio of warehouses in the greater Shanghai area and building a logistics facility in India as it seeks to tap into booming demand from e-commerce businesses.
The Shanghai and Delhi transactions strengthen ESR’s position as the largest property manager in Asia-Pacific. The firm manages approximately $140 billion in assets in 28 countries around the world, including $59 billion in new economy assets in the region.
ESR – which counts New York-based private equity firm Warburg Pincus, Chinese e-commerce giant JD.COM, Singaporean tycoon John Lim and billionaire Chew Gek Khim’s Straits Trading among the major shareholders – was among the investors most active in logistics properties in 2021. The Hong Kong-based company has completed more than $10bn in deals, including the April purchase of a portfolio of warehouses across Australia from Blackstone for $2.8bn. Global investors poured a record $48bn into Asia-Pacific logistics investments last year, up from $32bn in 2020, JLL said in a report released last week.
