Standard Life Suspends Trading in U.K. Property Fund, Citing Brexit Withdrawals

Standard Life Investments has suspended trading in a £ 2.9 billion ($3.9 billion) U.K. commercial real-estate fund after the number of investors asking to pull their money out rose after Britain's vote to leave the European Union.

Trading in the Standard Life Investments U.K. Real Estate Fund, which invests in commercial real estate including office, retail and warehouse properties, as well as its associated feeder fund was halted from midday Monday, the fund manager said in a statement.

The company said that the action was taken due to "exceptional market circumstances."

"The decision was taken following an increase in redemption requests as a result of uncertainty for the U.K. commercial real estate market following the EU referendum result," it said in a statement.

"The suspension was requested to protect the interests of all investors in the fund and to avoid compromising investment returns from the range, mix and quality of assets within the portfolio."

A spokeswoman said the fund will be closed for the foreseeable future to give the fund manager more time to sell assets to raise its cash levels at the best possible price.

It is rare for fund managers to impose such so-called gates on funds, although it became more common after the financial crisis in 2008. At that time, fears of falling property prices triggered high levels of redemptions that funds were unable to meet.

A spokesman for Aberdeen Asset Management, which also manages a listed open-ended U.K. commercial real estate fund worth £ 3.2 billion, said it had no plans to suspend trading on the fund. "We have seen a slowdown in redemptions since the referendum vote and the fund has significant cash holdings," the company said in a statement.

A Columbia Threadneedle Investments spokesman said there were "no changes" to its U.K. commercial property fund.

Elizabeth Pfeuti and Bernard Goyder contributed to this article.

Write to Darren Lazarus at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 04, 2016 20:55 ET (00:55 GMT)

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