NEW YORK CITY-The Blackstone Group saidWednesday morning that it has closed its Blackstone Real EstatePartners VII fund at $13.3 billion, reportedly the largestopportunistic real estate fund on record. Blackstone launched theglobal fund in April 2011 with an initial target of $10 billion,according to PERE.

In a statement, Jonathan Gray, global head ofthe private equity giant’s real estate business, says, “We areextremely appreciative to our investors for their strong support ofBREP VII. We believe the current environment provides a highlyattractive opportunity to generate favorable returns for them. Inaddition, we think that the experience and global reach of our teamuniquely positions us to capitalize on this opportunity.”

More than 250 investors globally have committed to the fund.Published reports in the Wall Street Journal and Reutersthis past July counted China’s State Administration ofForeign Exchange among them, with a reported $500-millioninvestment. Also in July, GE Capital Real Estatesaid it provided $575 million to BREP VII affiliates to acquire a16.4-million-square-foot industrial portfolio from DexusProperty Group.