Astarte Capital Partners & Yoo Capital announce the First Close of Yoo Capital Fund II

Yoo Capital Investment Management (“Yoo Capital”), the privately held real estate investment firm that has invested in over £2 billion AUM focused on special opportunities across the UK, has announced the first close of its second fund, Yoo Capital Fund II, L.P. (YCFII). Including moderate leverage, this provides the firm with access to £200 million in new capital to deploy.

YCFII, which has secured the commitments of institutional investors from across six continents to date, was launched in Q3 of 2019 off the back of Yoo Capital Fund I’s £1.3 billion investment into Olympia in partnership with a series of blue-chip institutional investors. YCFII is the first in a series of funds launched by a partnership between Yoo Capital and Astarte Capital Partners, the global institutional investor specialising in identifying and building best-in-class asset management businesses in the real assets space.

Managed by private equity veteran Lloyd Lee, Yoo Capital’s in-house private equity, asset and development management teams, YCFII gives Yoo Capital the opportunity to invest in assets in edge of prime and infill locations, creating institutional-quality mixed use, leisure, healthcare and life sciences real estate assets, predominantly in Central London.

Yoo Capital has engaged Park Hill Group to act as placement agent for YCFII after the first close.

John Hitchcox, Chairman of Yoo Group, commented: “In the fields of design, hospitality, branding and development, Yoo Group have been global placemakers, designers and creators of special places in over 38 countries. It is particularly exciting that we at Yoo Capital, with our own talented team of private equity, development and asset management professionals, are now steering an exciting new course of discretionary fund management.

“YCFII will enable Yoo Capital to bring further substantial capital to key projects in Central London and other major cities. Having invested in over £2 billion of UK assets over the last 10 years, we are committed to creating new opportunities, transformative assets, and providing economic stability in this critical period for the real estate sector.”

Dr. Stavros Siokos, Managing Partner at Astarte Capital, commented: “We are pleased to be embarking on this long-term partnership with Yoo Capital. The successful first closing of the fund has received strong support from our global investor base and is a testament to our joint strategy, as well as the resilience of the sector.

“As global asset managers specialising in real assets, Astarte Capital has deep sector expertise in investing across multiple economic cycles. Notwithstanding today’s volatile market conditions, we will leverage our experience to realise the significant  opportunities for well-capitalised and talented managers like Yoo Capital.” 

Lloyd Lee, Managing Partner at Yoo Capital and Chair of the Investment Committee, said: “This represents a key milestone in our long-term commitment to investing in the UK’s future. We have received tremendous support from our partners at Astarte Capital and our global investors, who recognise our firm’s track record in both placemaking and dealmaking as well as our ability to act as a stabilising capital force in this period of unprecedented market volatility.

“Bringing a complete set of asset management and development skills combined with a medium to long-term investment mentality, YCFII will deliver world-class placemaking to the communities and investors that we work with, creating valuable jobs and infrastructure for the UK’s real estate sector.” 

Frank Schmitz, Partner at Park Hill Group, added: “We are very pleased to be partnering with Yoo Capital. The first close of the fund is highly encouraging, particularly in that it was completed amid what has proven to be a turbulent capital raising environment. The team’s focus on placemaking in a core market like London has been well received by investors.”