Cliffwater's Cascade Real Assets Fund passes $1 billion in first month

Cliffwater's Cascade Real Assets Fund passed $1 billion in net assets in its first month, after launching in September, IREI reported.

The fund holds real estate and infrastructure through primaries, secondaries and co-investments in an open-architecture, multi-manager portfolio. Cliffwater says every asset in the book was originated after the rate hikes, and that holdings are spread across sectors and strategies. Sean Brenan, the firm's head of real estate and lead portfolio manager for CRAFX, said the launch lands in "a period of sustained illiquidity" in which sponsors and investors "are seeking out strong partners who can bring capital to bear in creative and timely transactions."

Cliffwater brings more than 20 years of real assets experience to the fund and has committed $14 billion in capital across real estate and infrastructure, per the company. The new $1 billion is roughly 2% of the $48.5 billion in regulatory assets Cliffwater reported as of Oct. 10, per PRED records.

Interval funds hold illiquid assets while offering periodic repurchases, letting wealth platforms place private real assets with individual investors who cannot commit to a closed-end drawdown schedule. The team was in place before the launch: PRED reported in August that Cliffwater hired GIC's Sam Walsh for the Cascade real assets team, and the fund launched the following month.