International Real Estate Kapitalanlagegesellschaft (IntReal) said on Thursday that it has taken over the fund administration unit of Warburg Henderson in a move which brings its total assets under management to EUR 4.5 bn, from EUR 600 mln previously.

IntReal, which is 100% owned by Warburg Henderson KAG, will oversee fund accounting and controlling, risk management and data processing for all of Warburg Henderson's real estate subsidiaries. As a result, its staff has increased from 5 to 27 people.

'We are delighted with this great leap forward. This brings us closer to our goal of becoming the quantitative and qualitative market leader in the German service management industry,' said Michael Schneider, managing director of IntReal. 'As an independent service provider, we focus exclusively on real estate fund administration. So this is a logical step to strengthen the development of IntReal.'

Having facilitated its first fund launch in December 2009, IntReal set up four further new property special funds for its German and European partners in 2010, totalling an investment volume of circa EUR 1.7 bn. The funds represent a variety of risk and return classes and sectors.

'This move increases our efficiency and allows us to strengthen our focus on our core competencies of portfolio management and fund development. It gives our investors an even better service,' added Henning Klöppelt, managing director at Warburg - Henderson KAG.

Warburg - Henderson KAG is a joint venture of UK asset manager Henderson Global Investors and the German private bank MM Warburg & CO.