Tokoro Capital obtains €32m loan from Leumi UK

Tokoro Capital has obtained a £27.3 mln (€31.6 mln) loan from Leumi UK to significantly expand its student housing platform.

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The platform offers cluster-style accommodations at affordable rates to domestic students attending Russell Group universities.
The loan, which could potentially be increased to £50 mln (€57.8 mln), will be used to refinance Tokoro's existing properties in Leeds, Durham, Manchester, and Newcastle and to fund future acquisitions.
This initiative is managed by Homie, Tokoro's specialist student housing operator.
This loan is the first deal between Leumi UK and Tokoro Capital, making it Tokoro's third successful fundraising through debt this year. Earlier, Tokoro obtained funding from Citi for its £100 mln (€115.6 mln) urban logistics plan in March and refinanced its £130 mln (€150.3 mln) Empress and Ada buildings in Mayfair with Aareal Bank in June.
Leumi UK has a substantial history in student accommodation financing. They recently provided a £23.5 mln (€27.2 mln) loan to acquire a PBSA property in Durham and, last December, financed the development of a PBSA project in Edinburgh with a £29.9 mln (€34.6 mln) loan.
Max Bassadone, partner at Tokoro Capital, commented: “The support of Leumi UK is a testament to our investment thesis and the operating expertise of our dedicated student management platform, Homie.”
Oliver Stenning, relationship director at Leumi UK, added: “This transaction is a further example of Leumi UK’s relationship-driven approach and commitment to delivering bespoke financing solutions for our customers. This is a high-quality portfolio managed by a specialist operator, and given the market for domestic second and third-year students has been largely overlooked to date, these assets have a strong future.”
Homie founder Tom Ferber commented: “Building and operating a portfolio of well-located, granular student assets is not easy. We’ve spent years curating the operational “special sauce”, and with the support of Leumi UK, we’re firmly past the “proof of concept” stage. As the environmental standards change, we continue to drive “mom and pop” landlords out of the market; we’re now ready to scale and institutionalise this sector.”
Sanjay Sethi, founder and partner at Tokoro Capital, said: “There was good lending appetite across the UK clearing banks and others, but Leumi stood out. Their commitment to growing with us, deep understanding of our industry, and close collaboration to tailor a solution around our specific needs made all the difference.”
Tokoro received legal advice from Greenberg Traurig and Mourants on the financial aspects of the transaction, while Trowers Hamlin and Russel-Cooke advised on real estate matters. Eversheds Sutherland and Walkers served as legal counsel for Leumi UK.