By Greg Roumeliotis, European Infrastructure Correspondent
AMSTERDAM, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Global infrastructure fundraising dropped by more than half in 2009 from the year before as investors moved to more liquid assets, according to data sent to Reuters on Sunday by placement agent Probitas Partners.
Just $10.7 billion was raised by infrastructure funds in 2009, 57 percent less than the $24.7 billion raised in 2008, according to figures compiled by Probitas. The contrast is even greater when compared to the $34.3 billon raised in 2007.
There are currently 119 funds on the road worldwide seeking an aggregate $115 billion according to market research and consultancy firm Prequin, making this a very competitive environment for fundraising.
Infrastructure assets such as roads, airports and power grids are notoriously illiquid, making them less appealing to investors during a liquidity crunch. This is exacerbated by the scarcity of debt to support projects, Probitas said.
'Investors began to come back to the market in the fourth quarter, with fundraising topping $10 billion for the full year after only hitting $6 billion over the first nine months,' said Kelly DePonte, a partner at Probitas.
'The likelihood is that fundraising will increase in 2010, though it is unlikely it will surge dramatically as a number of investors still have liquidity concerns.'
Infrastructure has emerged as distinct asset class in recent years with banks such as Macquarie, Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank, private equity firms such as CVC Capital Partners, KKR and Blackstone , and independent managers such as Alinda, all in the process of raising multibillion dollar funds.
'As is usually the case, funds focused on the developed markets of Europe and North America have raised the most money,' DePonte added.
(Reporting by Greg Roumeliotis; Editing by Tim Dobbyn) Keywords: INFRASTRUCTURE/FUNDS (greg.roumeliotis@thomsonreuters.com; +31 20 504 5005; Reuters Messaging: greg.roumeliotis.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
AMSTERDAM, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Global infrastructure fundraising dropped by more than half in 2009 from the year before as investors moved to more liquid assets, according to data sent to Reuters on Sunday by placement agent Probitas Partners.
Just $10.7 billion was raised by infrastructure funds in 2009, 57 percent less than the $24.7 billion raised in 2008, according to figures compiled by Probitas. The contrast is even greater when compared to the $34.3 billon raised in 2007.
There are currently 119 funds on the road worldwide seeking an aggregate $115 billion according to market research and consultancy firm Prequin, making this a very competitive environment for fundraising.
Infrastructure assets such as roads, airports and power grids are notoriously illiquid, making them less appealing to investors during a liquidity crunch. This is exacerbated by the scarcity of debt to support projects, Probitas said.
'Investors began to come back to the market in the fourth quarter, with fundraising topping $10 billion for the full year after only hitting $6 billion over the first nine months,' said Kelly DePonte, a partner at Probitas.
'The likelihood is that fundraising will increase in 2010, though it is unlikely it will surge dramatically as a number of investors still have liquidity concerns.'
Infrastructure has emerged as distinct asset class in recent years with banks such as Macquarie, Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank, private equity firms such as CVC Capital Partners, KKR and Blackstone , and independent managers such as Alinda, all in the process of raising multibillion dollar funds.
'As is usually the case, funds focused on the developed markets of Europe and North America have raised the most money,' DePonte added.
(Reporting by Greg Roumeliotis; Editing by Tim Dobbyn) Keywords: INFRASTRUCTURE/FUNDS (greg.roumeliotis@thomsonreuters.com; +31 20 504 5005; Reuters Messaging: greg.roumeliotis.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.