Gaw Capital, a Hong Kong private-equity firm focused on real estate, is seeking US$2 billion for a new fund that is expected to look for diversified opportunities in the Asia-Pacific region.
The firm is in talks with investors to contribute to its latest Gateway Real Estate Fund, which would invest in private equity and private credit deals. Gaw Capital confirmed the fundraising size and investment strategy to the Post, but did not provide further comments.
A potential investor was told that the fund’s investments would be diversified and remain flexible amid market volatility stoked by tariff tensions and an uncertain interest-rate trajectory.
The fundraising came amid a property market slump in Hong Kong and mainland China that has lasted for years, forcing some investors, borrowers and lending banks to take steep losses to sell assets.
In Hong Kong, prime office rents slid by 42 per cent over the past six years, according to Knight Frank, and government data showed that secondary-home prices declined by a cumulative 27 per cent since January 2022. In mainland China, new-home prices fell for a 22nd straight month in March, according to official data, but the bottom might be coming as the declines continued to narrow amid government support measures to boost sales.
The situations create potential opportunities for nonbank lenders like Gaw Capital to bridge the financing gap by making equity or credit investments at competitive or bargain pricing.
