News release

JLL supports AXA IM Alts on its €2bn European Life Sciences capital raise

The capital will be invested through Kadans Science Partner, a leading pan-European life sciences business, that AXA IM Alts acquired on behalf of clients last year

August 11, 2021

JLL has acted as corporate finance and real estate advisor to support AXA IM Alts, the alternatives investment business unit of French asset management group AXA Investment Managers, on its capital raising programme which has raised €1.9bn. The capital will be invested through Kadans Science Partner (“Kadans”), a leading pan-European life sciences business, that AXA IM Alts acquired on behalf of clients last year, advised by JLL as the exclusive M&A and real estate advisor for that transaction.

Peter Evans, Director of EMEA Corporate Finance, JLL, said: “It’s been great to work with AXA IM Alts again as it continues to grow its European Life Sciences platform following its acquisition of Kadans last year. This capital raise is testament to the strength of AXA IM Alts’ best-in-class asset management credentials and those of the Kadans platform as a market leading pan-European developer and operator of life sciences properties.  It will enable AXA IM Alts and Kadans to continue to grow their business footprint and portfolio across key markets. We look forward to continuing supporting AXA IM Alts and Kadans in implementing this strategy.”

Chris Walters, Head of UK Life Sciences, JLL, added: “This is a really exciting time for the science industry. Demand for suitable real estate continues to increase with the pace of supply struggling to keep up in major city clusters, such as London, Cambridge and Oxford in the UK, Leiden, Utrecht and Amsterdam in the Netherlands, and other established and emerging cities in Europe. With an increasing number of investment managers raising capital to invest in the sector, including AXA IM Alts, the future outlook is positive with no signs of the pace of growth slowing down.”

The European life sciences sector has continued to remain on a strong growth trajectory over the last few years, following the US market, with the global COVID-19 pandemic reinforcing this trend and further demonstrating the critical role life sciences has as a global industry sector. 

About JLL


JLL (NYSE: JLL) is a leading professional services firm that specializes in real estate and investment management. JLL shapes the future of real estate for a better world by using the most advanced technology to create rewarding opportunities, amazing spaces and sustainable real estate solutions for our clients, our people and our communities. JLL is a Fortune 500 company with annual revenue of $16.6 billion, operations in over 80 countries and a global workforce of more than 91,000 as of December 31, 2020. JLL is the brand name, and a registered trademark, of Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated. For further information, visit jll.com.