Morgan Stanley's property arm is asking investors for more time to spend almost $2.5 bn (EUR 1.9 bn) of committed equity on real estate assets, according to a news report in the Financial Times.

Investors in Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing (MSREI), including China Investment Corp and General Motors, have been asked to grant an extension of up to 18 months to allow the fund to fully deploy the $4.7 bn it raised last year, the paper said.

MSREI's G7 Fund has invested just 40% of its equity although it is scheduled to be fully deployed by next June.

A two-thirds majority of the votes is required to secure the extension but preliminary talks with investors have been positive so far, FT added.