When were real estate funds created?

250 years of investment funds - but when did the first real estate funds actually come into being?

There is a long tradition of 250 years in the world of investment, dating back to the time of the Dutch merchant Adriaan van Ketwich. In response to a historic banking crisis, the idea of the investment fund was born to offer investors a secure investment opportunity through diversification. This marked the beginning of the modern fund industry.

Nowadays, the idea of risk diversification through funds is still of great importance, and real estate funds in particular have emerged as an extremely attractive option for investors. The history of real estate funds in Europe dates back to 1938, when the first open-ended real estate fund was launched in Switzerland. Germany followed in 1959, although initially only accessible to wealthy investors.

The breakthrough for open-ended real estate funds in Germany came in the 1970s with the introduction of capital-forming benefits, which gave a broader population access to real estate funds. Since then, the popularity and investment volume has risen steadily, with net assets in the double-digit billion euro range.

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