Shojin chief Ondhia open to trade sale or strategic investor
Jatin Ondhia, chief executive of Shojin Property Partners, says he is open to a trade sale or bringing on a strategic investor in three years’ time.
The property investment platform just kicked off its Series B fundraising, targeting £4.9m in capital. This is expected to be the last private fundraising for the company, in anticipation of an initial public offering in 2026.
However, in a conversation with Alternative Credit Investor, Ondhia said that the final exit could just as easily be a trade sale. As part of the fundraising, the business has started talking to various institutions and wealth managers. Ultimately Ondhia says he is working on getting the business’ governance structure, risk management and reporting framework ready for whatever form the exit takes.
The fundraising is currently going well, he said, which he sees as a stepping stone to start doing origination in other countries as part of Shojin’s geographic expansion plans.
Read more: Shojin boosts management team with three new appointments
UK property investment still in demand
Although the property market has been challenged due to rising costs and interest rate hikes, Ondhia still says there is a lot of appetite from overseas investors to deploy capital in the UK.
“The UK has always been a place that a lot of international investors like to invest into. Certainly in the real estate space it’s always been seen as a store of value,” Ondhia said. “We’re seeing a lot of interest especially from countries that have historical relationships with the UK, like Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, India, Israel, Canada and South Africa.”
Despite the pressures in the market, Ondhia sees a recovery on the horizon with things being much more stable next year.
He added that the schemes Shojin provides funding for tend to be in build-to-rent or student accommodation, which have been quite resilient.
Read more: Shojin chief says diversification is key while rates and inflation remain unpredictable
