Wingate rules off oversubscribed fundraising

Wholesale investors are going gaga for property debt funds.

Wingate Group founder Farrell Meltzer. Eamon Gallagher

Street Talk understands Melbourne investment house Wingate has closed fundraising efforts for its medium-tenor senior debt portfolio early after seeing $50 million walk through its doors in two days.

Sources said Wingate had $40 million in available placements. Cornerstone investors – namely family offices and private investors – are understood to have taken up the lion’s share of the offering.

The July portfolio, which forecasts a return of 10.5 per cent per annum, is the latest in a series of first mortgage property portfolios. It’s secured over two senior debt property developments, with an average loan-to-value ratio of 65 per cent. These include a 14-month $45.7 million senior secured construction debt facility for the subdivision and development of 165 residential land lots in Victoria and a nine-month senior $51.9 million secured construction debt facility for the refinance and construction of over 100 townhouses in NSW.

Wingate has ruled off five raisings in the past year, pulling in over $200 million. It was also chasing $100 million for its third corporate credit fund in March, which would be deployed into mid-market corporate lending.

The investment house was founded more than 15 years ago, and its flagship Wingate Investment Partners Trust has more than $1 billion in funds under management.

The raise comes afterStreet Talk spotted rival investment group Alceon ramping up its presence in the lucrative non-bank lending scene, seeking $77 million from institutional and high-net-worth investors in June to fund a series of in-train residential construction projects across NSW, Victoria and the ACT.

Wi