This week, Nuveen, the $1.2 trillion asset management arm of the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association (TIAA), announced a shakeup of its $150 billion global Real Assets investment platform to add dedicated business lines in infrastructure and natural capital. According to Nuveen, the change was made In response to its own research, which revealed that over two-thirds of institutional investors are planning to increase allocation to infrastructure, natural resources investments and other alternative assets, as they seek reduce climate-related financial risks and align their portfolios more closely to decarbonization-based goals.
The newly structured Nuveen Real Assets platform will invest in real estate, farmland, infrastructure, timberland, agribusiness, and commodities. These will be organized under three core pillars, including two newly launched units: Nuveen Natural Capital and Nuveen Infrastructure, existing alongside Nuveen Real Estate, and drawing from capabilities under Nuveen’s Private Impact and Commodities segments. The new platform will officially launch in January 2022.
“Investor demand for real assets is increasing at an extraordinary pace and by bringing together our unrivaled expertise in alternatives, we will be better positioned to respond to meet growing global investor demand for long-term sustainably managed investments,” said Nuveen’s CEO of Real Assets, Mike Sales, in an official statement. “The strengthening of the platform represents the next step in our evolution in becoming the leading land-based asset manager, investing in a sustainable way for the enduring benefit of our clients and society.”
Nuveen Natural Capital will combine the capabilities of Westchester Group Investment Management, Nuveen’s farmland investment business, which manages over $7.7 billion in farmland assets, with GreenWood Resources, which manages some $1.5 billion of forestry and timberland assets across more than 760,000 acres. Martin Davies, who currently heads the Westchester Group, will lead Nuveen Natural Capital.
Meanwhile, Nuveen Infrastructure will combine private equity and equity-like strategies through Glennmont Partners, one of Europe’s largest renewable energy fund managers with over $2 billion in assets under management, alongside Nuveen’s existing diversified private infrastructure platform and its agribusiness platform, AGR Partners. Nuveen’s Biff Ourso, will head up Nuveen Infrastructure
Meanwhile, the remit of Nuveen Real Estate, one of the world’s largest institutional real estate investors, will remain unchanged. The real estate business line, which represents $133 billion of managed client assets, consists of six core business lines across the retail, office, logistics, housing, debt & alternatives sectors
