Kryalos, the Italian asset manager, has signed a deal with Euryale, the French senior living and nursing home specialist, for a €300 million healthcare fund that will target new builds, pre-constructed or refurbished assets in Italy.
Italy has an acute shortage of healthcare facilities and nursing homes, yet it has one of the fastest-ageing populations in the world, being second only to Japan. It is one of the countries with the lowest number of beds in specialised structures for citizens over 65 years of age: 1.86 places for every 100 people in 2021, compared to a European average of five.
Healthcare therefore has huge development potential as the current offer does not remotely match growing demand, especially in the wealthier northern regions of Italy like Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna.
“The healthcare sector needs a professional and competent approach to real estate investment in order to create facilities that meet the needs of the market in line with best-in-class sustainability criteria,” said Paolo Bottelli, CEO, Kryalos. “For us this fund is important because it allows us to enter a neglected market where we can get to play a significant role and at the same time make a contribution to society.”
The newly-constituted Euryale Healthcare Italia 1, a closed fund reserved for professional investors, targets core investments and its strategy is to promote ESG principles with a long-term horizon, up to 2041.
The two companies have already identified a substantial pipeline of investments, some of which will be realised this year. They include private medical facilities, specialised clinics, intensive therapy centres, diagnostic centres, clinics and care homes.
The deal is part of Kryalos’s strategy to expand its ESG investments, the asset manager said, while contributing to relieving the shortage of healthcare facilities in Italy. Senior citizens’ health and quality of life are seen as key both by the UN’s 2030 Agenda and by the PNRR, Italy’s national plan of recovery and resilience, which has set aside €2 billion to activate 1,288 new dedicated facilities and 600,000 new beds by 2035.
“Euryale wants to invest and expand its activity in the healthcare sector in Italy,” said David Finck, CEO, Euryale. “The Italian market needs many new health facilities and beds and this new partnership is a unique opportunity for us to continue our European investment strategy. We strongly believe that combining environmental and social criteria will lead to financial outperformance over the long term.”
Privately-held Kryalos has €10.7 billion AUM, while Euryale has €2.4 billion invested in the healthcare, senior living and nursing home sector in France and other European countries.
Author: Nicol Dynes, Real Asset Insight