BEVERLY HILLS, CA-A joint venture of locally based Kennedy Wilson and Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd. plans up to $250 million in acquisitions via a capital commitment of the same amount from Fairfax. The $250 million capital commitment follows a recent agreement for Fairfax to purchase up to $100 million of convertible preferred stock, as reported on GlobeSt.com.

The new acquisitions venture will be looking for commercial properties as well as loans and will focus mainly on California. The new agreement means that Kennedy Wilson will be "working with Fairfax on both the corporate level and deal level," said William McMorrow, chairman and CEO of Kennedy Wilson.

Kennedy Wilson will lead the sourcing and negotiation of investment opportunities in addition to holding key responsibility for due diligence, financing, property management, asset management and disposition. Chairman and CEO of Fairfax, Prem Watsa, commented in a prepared statement: "Kennedy Wilson’s strong investment track record and exceptional ability to source, manage and sell properties, make them a unique partner and an excellent choice for Fairfax in pursuing current value in the commercial real estate sector, particularly in California."

The agreement in which Fairfax will buy up to $100 million of Kennedy Wilson convertible preferred stock is a private placement. Kennedy Wilson's description of the deal said that it "creates a new strategic relationship between Kennedy Wilson and Fairfax, which has a market cap of approximately $8 billion and total investment portfolio of approximately $20 billion." Fairfax is a Toronto-based firm that has grown from a small specialist in trucking insurance 25 years ago to become one of the world’s leading insurance and reinsurance and investment companies.