Samty Holdings, a Japanese accommodation developer and hotel operator owned by Hillhouse Investment Management, has announced the final close of its ¥58 billion ($390 million) private real estate fund.
The Eastgate-Samty Hospitality Fund I LP will focus exclusively on hotel assets. The fund follows Samty’s privatisation backed by Hillhouse Investment’s Rava Partners division and Daiwa Securities Group earlier this year in a deal that valued the company at about $1.13 billion.
The fund has secured capital commitments from a group of domestic institutional investors and will target high-occupancy hotel assets in key urban locations, per the announcement.
Its initial portfolio comprises 10 hotels with a combined 1,530 rooms across Tokyo, Nagoya, Kyoto, Fukuoka, Hiroshima, and Nagasaki.
According to Samty, the properties maintain occupancy rates exceeding 85%, driven by sustained growth in inbound tourism and limited new hotel supply.
The fund will operate under a joint general partner structure with EastGate Group, one of Japan’s largest real estate managers, with over ¥700 billion in assets under management.
The partnership is expected to leverage the operational strengths of both firms to drive returns amid Japan’s recovering tourism sector, according to the announcement.
Samty’s move comes amid a broader evolution in its business model, with Daiwa Securities Group and Hillhouse’s Rava Partners supporting its expansion into real estate fund management.
Daiwa CEO Seiji Ogino said the fund’s establishment underscores a major transition in Samty’s corporate strategy.
