Octopus Capital has launched today as the new brand for the institutional asset management arm of Octopus Investments. Octopus Capital has been set up to support institutional clients’ goals with investment strategies built for performance and purpose.
For the first 25 years of the company’s history, Octopus has used a single, combined brand – Octopus Investments – for its retail and institutional asset management businesses. While this has been a successful strategy, the company is now at an inflection point where the growth ambitions of both its institutional and retail investment businesses necessitate two differentiated, focused and equally strong brands.
Octopus Capital determinedly seeks out nascent investment areas – it was one of the first investors in UK renewable energy assets – or asset classes that could be better served, such as affordable housing. The company thrives on making the ‘new’, trusted, and the ‘complex’, simple.
Under the direction of CEO, Lieven Debruyne, and backed by this rich heritage in pioneering new investment classes, Octopus Capital is investing into three areas it believes can have the greatest impact for institutional investors, and the world around it:
- Real estate: Octopus Real Estate, the brand name for the specialist real estate lending and investing business, will no longer be used. Instead, it will be part of Octopus Capital, continuing its success in funding the entire lifecycle of real estate, providing a place to live or work for every stage of life.
- Energy & infrastructure: Octopus Capital invests in the infrastructure that tomorrow requires, whether it is helping accelerate the journey to net zero or investing in the systems that will power a more sustainable, connected future.
- Private debt: the new platform launched earlier this year aims to support companies across the entire capital structure, particularly those that are active in impact investing and looking to decarbonise. Octopus Capital will enable these companies to move beyond early-stage equity into large-scale business deployment.
Lieven Debruyne, CEO of Octopus Capital said:
“Institutional investors, on behalf of the people whose money they are entrusted to manage, have a uniquely heightened sense of responsibility to deliver financial security, while also making the world a better place. Balancing this need for attractive financial returns and generating those returns in a positive way, while being mindful of portfolio allocations and diversification, has never been more imperative.
“However, we know there isn’t a trade-off between delivering financial returns and having a positive impact on society and the planet. By investing in the right people, ideas and industries, institutional capital can be a force for good and has the power to make our vision of tomorrow a reality. We’re incredibly excited about our new brand and how it underlines our intention to deliver investment excellence on behalf of our investors.”
