HELSINKI-The Finland-based funds and private equity house IceCapital has established its third housing fund, IceCapital Housing Fund II, to invest total capital of some €400 million in rental apartments in Finland, mainly to be built with a state interest subsidy.

The fund will target new, privately financed or renovated rental apartment buildings in the Helsinki metropolitan area and in the districts of Tampere, Oulu, Jyväskylä, Turku, Kuopio, Hämeenlinna, Joensuu, Lahti, Lappeenranta, Vaasa and Riihimäki. The start-up portfolio consists of 20 housing companies, totally 1,056 apartments, with a value of €185 million. Further investments will be made during the following three years.

Hannu Parikka, managing director of fund administrator IceCapital Real Estate Asset Management, said: "The demand for rental apartments is growing continuously in the biggest cities and their neighbouring municipalities."

The biggest fund investors are pension and insurance groups - VR Pension Fund, The State Pension Fund, Etera Mutual Pension Insurance Company, Local Insurance Mutual Company, Finnish Cultural Foundation and Cooperative Association Tradeka.

IceCapital is an independent Nordic Group focusing in investment banking, asset management, private equity and brokerage services. It has some €2.8 billion in assets under management. The parent company, IceCapital Securities, was established in 1999.