TKP Investments has invested €52m (£32m) in the UK Shopping Centre Trust.

Dutch pension fund manager TKP Investments has invested €52m (£32m) in the £1.9bn fund, following a strategic decision to increase its exposure to retail property in the UK. The closed-ended Jersey Property Unit Trust was set up in 2005 and recorded a net ungeared performance of 16.5% last year.

Robert-Jan Tel, head of real estate investments at TKP, said: ‘We had a key requirement to access prime retail property in the UK and were attracted to the UK Shopping Centre Trust because it satisfied this requirement.’

After securing its first foreign investor, Standard Life is planning to launch a feeder fund which will enable more efficient distribution of returns to other non-UK investors.

Ed Jenkins, fund manager of the UK Shopping Centre Trust, added: ‘It’s a real endorsement of our property offering that TKP has chosen to invest with us. With an overseas feeder fund in the pipeline, I’m confident we can further diversify our investor base – both in Europe and beyond.’