Real estate is an enticement that investment firms can’t resist:
SYGNUS CREDIT Investments, SCI, is looking to real estate and going beyond Jamaica’s boundaries to make more money for its investors.
A property fund is being created for the purpose, but Berisford Grey, CEO of SCI’s management company Sygnus Capital, says it’s too early to relay the details.
“Right now we are exploring opportunities to potentially fund asset classes such as real estate,” Grey said Wednesday. “Sygnus will be looking to get additional capital to fund the demand in Sygnus Credit Investment,” he said.
Sygnus is planning to seed the property fund with proceeds from a private placement. But Grey would not reveal the fundraising target nor the timing of the placement.
Although Grey would not make the link, its own push comes after Sygnus structured financing for another private equity firm, newcomer First Rock Capital Holdings, that raised $2.5 billion in March mostly to be used for real estate investments. The success of that fundraising effort surprised
even Sygnus, given that First Rock is a start-up operation whose official launch was still pending then.
Sygnus Credit is itself only two years old, but already it has investments spanning several sectors in various Caribbean markets. Distribution occupies 25 per cent of SCI’s portfolio while manufacturing and energy each account for 19 per cent. Grey says Sygnus wants to strengthen its position by taking advantage of certain growth areas in the Jamaican economy.
“Jamaica’s economy is on the upswing at the moment, therefore, certain areas of the real estate market are very attractive,” he said. “In addition, there is energy along with manufacturing and distribution.”
The company is also focused on opportunities overseas, but its forays remain within the region.
“We see opportunities in various sectors and we are focusing on achieving geographical diversification. This has seen us investing in the Dutch Caribbean, St Lucia, Barbados, and we are looking to Bahamas to do some,” Grey said.