Dutch pension asset manager APG is launching an online platform to provide long-term loans from institutional investors to housing associations without bank interference.

The platform LIST Amsterdam will connect housing association directly with Dutch institutional investors, and APG has already teamed up with a number of housing associations before the launch.

Housing corporations in the Netherlands are building tens of thousands of new social homes in the coming years, while more than two million homes owned by corporations need to be made more sustainable, APG said.

This, the manager explained, requires an additional financing of sustainable loans of around €100bn until 2050.

The initiative fits the ambitions of APG’s pension scheme clients APB, bpfBOUW, SPW, and its own employee’s fund PPF APG to invest more in the Netherlands if possible.

APG manager treasuries and inflation linked debt Sandor Steverink said: "Given their ambition, housing associations are in great need for alternative providers of capital. At the same time, we at APG are interested to provide long-term loans because they deliver stable and reliable returns for our pension fund clients."

The first loan was recently closed, and a second one is planned, APG said. After the first successful issuances, the platform will be opened to other institutional investors.

"With this initiative we set up a transparent and simple platform where supply and demand of these types of loans can quickly find each other. As a result, housing associations have easier and cheaper access to finance. In addition, APG can realize a slightly higher return on investments for its pension fund clients, compared to Dutch state loans," Steverink said.

The loans on LIST Amsterdam are being guaranteed through the Social housing guarantee fund (WSW). In the coming years, there will be enough capital available for long-term loans via the new platform, APG said.

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