Investec Real Estate has committed over £1bn of senior finance in the purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) sector since 2011.
Investec has supported over 17 clients, including CA Ventures, Scape, Student Roost and Watkin Jones, with the delivery of 22,000 beds across 52 schemes in 23 cities.
The milestone was achieved following the arrangement of a 51-month, £65m development loan to Scape, the global PBSA provider, to support the construction of a 693-unit scheme in Leeds, which is due to complete in time for the 2024/2025 academic year.
To date, Investec has provided Scape and its partners with over £142m of development finance, across five UK schemes.
Mark Bladon, head of Investec Real Estate, said: “Having been one of the first UK lenders back in 2011 to recognise the institutional grade returns that PBSA could generate, we have followed through on our conviction call, becoming the partner of choice to a raft of highly reputable domestic and international investors and developers.
“In particular, we were attracted by the sector’s structural and demographic drivers, as well as countercyclical characteristics, with the latter in particular borne out during the recent periods of social, political and economic disruption.
“The past decade has seen us be one of the most active lenders in this space, and this milestone is testament to the embedded platform that the expert team here has built. The sector remains a key focus and we have strong pipeline of borrower seeking bespoke funding solutions for high quality and environmentally responsible schemes.”
