Sime Darby Property lands $306M for new data centre, logistics fund
What's the deal? Sime Darby PropertyDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has closed its US$298.9M New Economy Venture fund, securing 100% of capital commitments at its first close. The closed-ended, Shariah-compliant private equity vehicle will invest in build-to-lease data centres and industrial and logistics projects across the Malaysian developer's key townships.
Who's backing it? Commitments came from the Employees Provident FundDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, the Armed Forces Fund BoardDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, and Great Eastern Life Assurance (Malaysia)Dealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. Sime Darby Property, which acts as the fund's general partner and manager, contributed US$119.6M to the core fund.
Why now? Launched in June, the fund is part of SHIFT32, Sime Darby Property's seven-year roadmap to grow recurring income through fee-based earnings and investment returns while keeping its balance sheet light.
What's the endgame? The development-fund model lets institutional capital enter while assets are still being built and leased, generating fee income and co-investment returns before assets move to platforms such as REITs. Two seed assets — Elmina Business Park and City of Elmina — have been acquired, with construction expected to finish in the second half of 2027.
The bigger picture: New Economy Venture is the group's second institutionally backed development fund, following the US$239.1M Industrial Development Fund set up in 2021. Together they hold a combined US$538M.
The group's investment and asset management division now oversees roughly US$1.05B in assets, including hyperscale data centre leases that began operating in April 2024.
The signal: Repeat institutional backing — Great Eastern committed to both funds — points to growing appetite for Malaysian data centre and logistics infrastructure, and for asset-light models that let developers scale on third-party capital.
Read more: tradersunion.com
Image credit: cellanr
