Warburg Pincus enters South Korea’s senior housing market with SK Group

[SINGAPORE] US private equity company Warburg Pincus has entered an alliance with South Korea’s SK D&D and D&D Investment to invest in the country’s senior housing market.

The real estate development unit of conglomerate SK Group, SK D&D is also the parent of asset management firm D&D Investment. The partnership with New York-based Warburg Pincus, which has more than US$87 billion (S$115.8 billion) in assets under management, will focus on buying and developing senior housing in the Greater Seoul area, the companies said on Monday (Mar 10).

Takashi Murata, managing director and co-head of Asia real estate and head of Japan at Warburg Pincus, said in the statement that “the senior housing market in South Korea presents tremendous opportunities, fuelled by the shifting demographics and a growing ageing population”.

South Korea became a super-aged society last year, where those aged 65 or more exceed 20 per cent of the total population. In a May 2024 report, Colliers said that the senior housing market is forecast to grow to 168 trillion won (S$154.3 billion) in 2030 from 72 trillion won in 2020.

The Warburg Pincus-SK joint venture is seeded with three assets. One of them, located within the core Gangnam residential district, will be developed into a 12-story assisted living facility exceeding 10,000 square metres. Building is set to start in early 2026, with completion targeted for 2028. The other two assets are already in operation.

The partnership with SK D&D and D&D Investment marks Warburg Pincus’ third venture in South Korea through its Asia real estate fund. Since the US company started investing in Asian property in 2005, it has pumped in more than US$9 billion in over 50 real estate platforms and ventures.