Asia-Pacific capital flows into European real estate: the principals shaping a new corridor

Asian investors accelerate European real estate allocations as recovery takes hold

European real estate investment volumes reached approximately €215 billion in 2025, a 9% year-on-year increase, according to Savills. The recovery cycle now in motion is drawing renewed attention from institutional investors across the Asia-Pacific region, particularly those from Japan, Korea, and Australia, who are leveraging massive superannuation industries to diversify outside their domestic markets, as reported by PERE in March 2026.

This capital reallocation is reshaping the competitive landscape for European property assets. It is also placing a premium on the principals who manage cross-border strategies, individuals whose expertise bridges geographic, regulatory, and cultural divides.

Among the figures drawing increased market attention is Amir Fukuta, Senior Director and Portfolio Manager for Real Estate Funds at Invesco Real Estate, based in London. Fukuta contributes to the management of European real estate investment strategies at one of the world's largest real estate investment managers. His profile sits alongside other prominent principals tracked by the GRI Institute, including Roger Orf, Partner and Head of Real Estate, Europe at Apollo Global Management, and Richard Spencer, Head of Real Estate in Europe at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, who leads the firm's real estate credit strategies and alternative lending operations.

The convergence of these leaders within the European market reflects a structural shift. Capital originating in Asia-Pacific is no longer a marginal force in European real estate. It is becoming a defining feature of the investment cycle ahead.

Who is Amir Fukuta and why does the market track his activity?

Amir Fukuta operates at the intersection of institutional fund management and European property markets. As Senior Director and Portfolio Manager for Real Estate Funds at Invesco Real Estate, he contributes to strategies that allocate capital across the continent, according to GRI Institute data from 2026.

Invesco Real Estate manages a global portfolio with significant European exposure, and Fukuta's London-based role places him at a critical node for capital deployment decisions. The growing search interest around his name, identified through GRI Institute analytics, signals that institutional participants and allocators are actively monitoring the principals responsible for directing cross-border flows into European assets.

This is consistent with broader market behaviour. In periods of recovery, allocators scrutinise not only asset classes and geographies but also the specific decision-makers steering capital. The ability to identify and engage with these principals often determines access to co-investment opportunities, deal flow, and strategic partnerships.

Fukuta's visibility reflects a wider trend: the emergence of a cohort of Asia-Pacific-connected or globally positioned portfolio managers whose mandates channel capital from eastern hemispheres into European real estate. Korean pension funds, Japanese institutional investors, and Australian superannuation vehicles are all expanding their offshore real estate exposure, and the principals managing these flows are becoming essential figures in the European investment ecosystem.

What is driving Asia-Pacific capital into European real estate in 2026?

Several structural forces are converging to accelerate Asia-Pacific capital deployment into Europe.

First, the European recovery itself provides a compelling entry point. Savills forecasts that European real estate investment volumes will rise by approximately 18% in 2026 as pricing firms up and institutional capital returns. This projected growth creates a window for cross-border investors to acquire assets at values that still reflect post-correction adjustments, before repricing fully materialises.

Second, allocator sentiment has shifted decisively. According to Aberdeen Investments, the proportion of non-listed real estate fund investors looking to increase their allocations jumped from 18% in 2025 to 38% in 2026. The INREV Investor Intentions Survey 2026 reinforces this trajectory, finding that 39% of investors in non-listed funds expect to increase allocations to European real estate over the next two years.

Third, Asia-Pacific investors face domestic constraints that make European diversification strategically necessary. PERE reported in March 2026 that Asian capital flows into European real estate are increasing, with Korean, Japanese, and Australian sources particularly active. Australia's superannuation system, now among the largest pools of retirement capital globally, is structurally compelled to seek offshore returns. Japanese institutions operate in a persistent low-yield domestic environment. Korean investors, including national pension services, have for years built European portfolios and are now deepening their commitments.

The residential and living sector stands out as a primary destination. According to ING, the residential/living sector was the largest European real estate investment sector in 2025, capturing a 22% share of the market. ING projects that the residential sector will continue to dominate European real estate investment in 2026, while offices could see growth as sentiment improves and structural headwinds stabilise.

The principals steering the capital

The scale and complexity of cross-border real estate investment demand senior leadership with deep market knowledge. Three figures exemplify the calibre of principals now shaping European strategies.

Amir Fukuta at Invesco Real Estate manages fund-level strategies that deploy capital across European markets. His role as a portfolio manager positions him to influence asset selection, sector allocation, and risk management across a diversified European book.

Roger Orf, Partner and Head of Real Estate, Europe at Apollo Global Management, oversees property investments and fundraising activities for one of the world's most influential alternative asset managers. Apollo's European real estate platform has expanded significantly in recent years, and Orf's leadership is central to its positioning across value-add and opportunistic strategies.

Richard Spencer leads Goldman Sachs Asset Management's real estate operations in Europe, with a particular focus on real estate credit strategies and alternative lending. As traditional bank lending remains constrained in several European markets, alternative credit has become a critical capital source, and Spencer's role places Goldman Sachs at the centre of this structural shift.

These principals are regularly tracked within the GRI Institute network, where senior leaders in real estate and infrastructure convene to exchange intelligence and build partnerships. The institute's events and member interactions provide a platform where cross-border capital strategies are discussed at the highest level.

Regulatory currents shaping the investment landscape

Asia-Pacific investors entering European real estate in 2026 must navigate an evolving regulatory environment, particularly in the residential sector that dominates current allocations.

In the United Kingdom, the Renters Reform legislation, effective May 2026, outlaws no-fault evictions and ends fixed-term tenancies, increasing tenant protections in the private rented sector. Scotland has introduced a rent cap that limits residential rental growth in tight housing markets to CPI plus 1%, while specifically exempting Build to Rent properties to encourage capital deployment.

Ireland has extended rent controls across the country, capping rental growth at the lower of CPI or 2%, effective March 2026. The legislation includes specific exemptions for new build apartments, a deliberate incentive for institutional investment in new supply.

At the EU level, the Short-Term Rental Data Sharing Regulation, effective around 2026, forces online short-term rental platforms to share comprehensive data with local authorities. This empowers local governments to enforce stricter limits and return properties to long-term residential supply, a measure that could redirect capital toward purpose-built rental assets.

These regulatory developments create a complex but navigable environment. Institutional investors with experienced principals and strong local advisory networks are best positioned to structure compliant, high-performing portfolios. The exemptions for Build to Rent and new construction signal that European policymakers recognise the need for institutional capital, even as they tighten tenant protections.

A corridor with structural momentum

The Asia-Pacific-to-Europe capital corridor is not a cyclical phenomenon. It reflects structural rebalancing by some of the world's largest pools of institutional capital. Australian superannuation funds, Japanese insurers, and Korean pension vehicles are all pursuing long-term geographic diversification, and Europe's recovering real estate market offers both scale and depth.

The principals managing this capital, figures like Amir Fukuta, Roger Orf, and Richard Spencer, are essential intermediaries in a process that connects eastern capital with western assets. Their expertise in navigating regulatory complexity, identifying sector-level opportunities, and structuring cross-border transactions determines the efficiency and success of these flows.

As the proportion of investors planning to increase European real estate allocations rises sharply, from 18% in 2025 to 38% in 2026 according to Aberdeen Investments, the competitive dynamics of the market will intensify. Access to the right principals, the right networks, and the right intelligence will separate the allocators who capture the recovery from those who observe it.

The GRI Institute continues to serve as a convening platform where these leaders exchange perspectives and build the relationships that underpin cross-border capital deployment. In a market defined by recovery and reallocation, the individuals who direct capital matter as much as the capital itself.