Stafford Capital wins $569m mandate

Stafford Capital Partners announced it has been selected as a manager for the ACCESS Pool in global core timberland, and as ACCESS' sole global impact timberland manager.

The initial size of the ACCESS timberland mandate is around £300 million ($569 million).

Members of the ACCESS Pool have one of the longest histories in timberland investing within UK Local Government Pension Schemes (LGPS).

The ACCESS Pool is made of 11 UK LGPS Administering Authorities and, as of March 31, had Pool assets totaling £40 billion ($75.89 billion). Stafford invests in core timberland through the Stafford International Timberland (SIT) series of funds.

The strategy invests in operational, yielding timberland estates, accessing investments primarily through off-market secondary transactions.

ACCESS' global timberland impact allocation will be made to Stafford's strategy which establishes new commercial timberland estates and targets a return including a supply of high-quality carbon offsets for clients.

Stafford chief executive Angus Whiteley said institutional investor interest in the timberland sector is growing globally.

"This new mandate from ACCESS significantly strengthens our successful long-term partnership in the timberland sector. Stafford currently manages around US$1.2 billion for UK LGPS in timberland and this extension of further funds demonstrates both the growing global institutional investor interest in timber and Stafford's expertise and track record in the secondaries market," Whiteley said.

"For over 20 years, Stafford has leveraged its technical expertise in alternative investments to unlock complex opportunities for its investors. It is through our unique access and creative mindset that Stafford can offer some of the best risk-adjusted returns from some of the hardest-to-reach parts of the market.  "Stafford is highly committed to these specialist markets and to its partnerships with likeminded institutional investors, looking for growth with greater impact."

This comes after Stafford confirmed a $220 million mandate with First Super at the end of June.

Stafford said its Australian private equity co-investment program with the super fund had been converted into an evergreen structure.

Stafford's original private equity program with First Super, which has been operating since 2010, has generated a new IRR in excess of 20% p.a. since inception.