WHILE DEREK Quinlan adjusts to life in Switzerland, his former colleagues in the newly named Avestus Capital are hoping to launch a new investment fund this summer.
Undeterred by the global credit crunch, I’m told Avestus – formerly Quinlan Private Capital – hopes to put together a fund worth €350 million to €400 million, which will be invested in real estate in western Europe, including in some Irish assets. The fund will seek to invest in offices and retail and is expected to be launched in July or August. The fundraising is “well advanced”, according to some sources. Only time will tell on that front.
It remains to be seen how many of Avestus’s Irish clients will participate, given that most are probably to the pin of the collar financially as Nama and a range of creditors close in.
However, there is expected to be sufficient interest from investors in Britain and elsewhere to get the fund away.
Avestus hasn’t been immune to the effects of the credit crunch.
Cash calls at Jurys Inns and its Marriott hotels in the UK were made, while a restructuring plan for the Four Seasons Hotel in Dublin is in train.
Its headcount has been pared back and plans to expand activities in central and eastern Europe are on ice. Launching a big fund would be a rare piece of good news in the current climate.
