• QInvest invested US$135 million in GCC real estate in the last 18 months
• QInvest to participate in Cityscape Qatar Real Estate Summit
• Craig Cowie to talk about market drivers, dynamics, and opportunities in the real estate sector
QInvest’s Head of Principal Investment and Real Estate Investment & Advisory, Craig Cowie, will be a keynote speaker at Qatar’s Cityscape Real Estate Summit in June, where he will provide his view on market drivers, dynamics, and opportunities within the real estate sector. The summit, taking place on 2-4 June 2014, will be held at the Qatar National Convention Centre in Doha and gathers key government representatives, top developers and investors to discuss market updates, mega-project news, sector analysis, as well as the challenges associated with the rising costs of construction.
Tamim Hamad Al-Kawari, CEO of QInvest, said:
“In the last 18 months, QInvest invested US$135 million of equity capital into commercial real estate projects across the GCC, which demonstrates our commitment to, and belief in, the sector. Real estate will remain a strategic priority for QInvest moving forward and we are looking forward to further investment in the sector, which is a key driver of regional growth.”
Craig Cowie, QInvest’s Head of Principal Investment and Real Estate Investment & Advisory, commented:
“In 2013, QInvest was involved in a number of exciting transactions, including acting as sole advisor to Constellation on its US$950 million acquisition of four French assets. In 2014, we are focused on originating new investment opportunities - specifically yielding assets across both debt and equity - as well as providing effective financing solutions for real estate deals in Qatar and gateway markets such as Continental Europe, London and the US. This summit will provide a fantastic platform for market participants to explore these opportunities and discuss market dynamics.”
QInvest’s Real Estate team provides solutions for prime real estate transactions in the GCC, Europe, London, SE Asia and the USA. QInvest acts as a both principal and arranger in the acquisition of controlling and non-controlling interests in direct real estate with typical equity or mezzanine investments being between US$20 and US$100 million. QInvest has been able to invest through numerous structures, including mezzanine, preferred equity and equity, all of which are represented in transactions closed since 2010. The company has been involved with c.US$1.0 billion worth of real estate transactions since the beginning of this year - encouragingly, US$200 million has been in Qatar. Such transactions form a key part of QInvest’s new strategy to deliver long term sustainable growth and reinforce the bank’s position as a leading Islamic financial institution.
In February, QInvest published its audited full year 2013 results, reporting a 40% increase in revenue, a 29% reduction in costs and a return to profitability. 2013 saw significant capital deployment across financing and real estate transactions. Meanwhile, balance sheet risk was significantly reduced through collection of outstanding receivables and a reduction in foreign currency exposure.