MSCI agrees $950m purchase of Real Capital Analytics

Global research and technology firm Morgan Stanley Capital International has agreed to acquire Real Capital Analytics for $950m as it looks to enhance its commercial property services and drive innovation.

Real Capital Analytics is an analytics provider that aggregates transaction data in more than 170 countries, with a database of $20tn of commercial property deals. The company provides insights into market pricing, capital flows and investment trends across the locations it covers.

By purchasing RCA, MSCI is expanding its suite of property services and tools for managing and understanding performance and risk – including climate risk – within real estate portfolios.

Henry Fernandez, chairman and CEO of MSCI, said the combination of the two companies’ data tools creates “an unparalleled level of solutions” for property at a time of change for the industry.

He added: “The commercial real estate sector is seeing substantial transformation driven by several factors, including shifting consumer behaviours in work, lifestyle and travel accelerated by the pandemic, realignment in global supply chains and the impact of climate change.”

MSCI’s own datasets comprise $2tn in private real estate assets going back two decades in 30 countries and $450bn in publicly listed real estate across 170 listed companies predominantly in the UK, EMEA and APAC.

The analytics provider is known for its indices and benchmarks that track performance across multiple sectors over four decades – a part of the business that was bolstered by the acquisition of IPD almost a decade ago.

Last year, MSCI entered a strategic partnership with Burgiss, a company that provides private asset transparency and performance benchmark tools on a portfolio management platform.

Fernandez said: “Investors will be better supported to access the opportunities that exist within this sector at scale, informed by industry-leading insights and the premier global database capturing the global commercial real estate footprint.”

Robert White, Jr, founder and president of RCA, added: “MSCI is a natural home for Real Capital Analytics since our primary goal has always been to bridge the information gap between commercial real estate and other asset classes across the financial markets.

“The combination of the two firms creates a powerful team that will lead innovation and analytics in the real estate asset class well into the future.”