The international real estate investment manager has strengthened its retail activities in Italy.

Savills Investment Management has launched the Mercury Fund, which it will manage on behalf of CONAD, a consortium of independent retailers in Italy, and Gruppo Cattolica Assicurazioni, an Italian insurance company.

Italian banking groups Banca IMI (Gruppo Intesa) and Unicredit granted a preliminary loan of €170 million ($188 million) to the fund.

The fund is structured to allow three CONAD cooperatives to sell and lease back retail properties worth a combined €300 million across central and northern Italy on long-term leases. Each of the three co-operatives possess a 49 per cent stake in each of their sub-funds, with Gruppo Cattolica Assicurazioni holding the remaining 51 per cent.

Savills IM SGR, the Italian arm of the company, will manage the fund's three sub-funds, targeting stable dividends over the long-term. 

β€œIt represents a significant milestone for our activities in Italy, which traditionally were focused on the development of initiatives aimed mainly at foreign investors in the Italian market,” said Giuseppe Oriani, managing director of Savills IM SGR, of the launch.

Savills IM SGR has a 28-strong team in Italy, managing over €2 billion of assets.