U.S. private equity firm Sixth Street has significantly expanded its presence in the UK real estate market with the closure of a £350 million acquisition of a multilet industrial portfolio, marking its latest high-profile investment in the sector. The deal involves the recapitalisation of a 37-asset industrial property portfolio owned by Clipstone Industrial REIT, listed on the International Stock Exchange. In conjunction with this transaction, Sixth Street and Clipstone have established a joint venture named C6 Industrial, which aims to pursue further acquisitions of multilet industrial assets in the UK.
The portfolio encompasses approximately 1.7 million square feet of space, with around 40% located strategically within the London and M25 corridor. The remainder spans prime occupational markets across the South East of England, including key locations such as Enfield, Hanworth, Sutton, Chessington, Welwyn, Bracknell, Reading, Newbury, and Stansted Airport. Sixth Street is providing the majority of the equity capital, while Clipstone will retain management responsibilities for the assets, aiming to enhance and grow the portfolio through new acquisitions.
Sixth Street’s trajectory in UK real estate has been marked by a series of substantial investments. Notably, in 2024, the firm partnered with Patron Capital to acquire UK housebuilder Cala Group from Legal & General for £1.35 billion, a move reported by Reuters as part of Legal & General’s strategy to streamline its portfolio and focus on core businesses. This acquisition is regarded as a significant step for Sixth Street in bolstering its UK residential development presence. Besides residential and industrial real estate, Sixth Street has also ventured into office space investments; for example, a joint venture with Henley Investments completed a purchase of New Square, an office park near Heathrow, in 2022.
The industrial portfolio acquisition underlines Sixth Street’s focused strategy on high-quality, mission-critical industrial real estate assets. Earlier in 2025, Sixth Street collaborated with Copley Point Capital to acquire several logistics assets across the UK: three assets from National Farmers Union Mutual Insurance Society in March and five from Barings in May. These acquisitions increased their logistics portfolio to over 3.3 million square feet in premium logistics hubs, reinforcing their commitment to the UK’s burgeoning industrial sector driven by strong demand for distribution and warehousing facilities.
While Sixth Street has demonstrated robust ambition in UK property markets, its previous joint venture bid for Warehouse REIT—a £470 million listed warehousing specialist—did not come to fruition as Blackstone ultimately completed the takeover independently. This highlights the competitive environment in UK logistics real estate and the strategic positioning required by major investors in this space.
Sixth Street’s roots in private equity, coupled with high-profile sports investments such as its part-ownership of the Boston Celtics, illustrate a diversified and expansive investment approach. The firm appears intent on deepening its footprint within the UK’s real estate sectors, particularly across industrial, residential, and office properties, via significant capital deployment and strategic partnerships.
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Source: Noah Wire Services