The strategy of the Fund is to invest in a globally diversified portfolio of best-in-class, next generation real estate and infrastructure companies that are listed in developed markets. These companies are likely to benefit from the digitalisation of economies, changing the way we work, live and play.

The Fund currently invests in 32 listed companies operating at the intersection of real estate and technology. These companies own physical assets that are vital to the functioning of the digital economy and are active in four specialist sub-sectors: logistics warehouses supporting e-commerce (50.1% portfolio weight), data centres (25.0% portfolio weight), mobile communication towers (19.7% portfolio weight), and networks (3.8% portfolio weight).

Over the course of the month, the NAV decreased by 0.8% (C Acc GBP). Since launch, the NAV has increased by 2.2% (C Acc GBP). In comparison, the global real estate index has increased by 9.3%^*. During September, data centres was the best performing sub-sector, up 0.7%^** on the month. This was followed by logistics, which was up 0.2%. Networks and mobile communication towers delivered negative returns, down 1.9%^** and 2.9%^** respectively.

In September, the Federal Reserve delivered their first rate cut of the year, lowering the target range by 25 basis points to 4.00–4.25%. It was the first adjustment in interest rates from the central bank in nine months, however markets were relatively unreactive, reflecting how well expectations had already been priced in. The labour market continued to soften in September, while inflation ticked slightly higher to 4.3%. Chairman of the Fed, Jerome Powell, noted, “Risks to inflation are tilted to the upside, and risks to employment are tilted to the downside, which presents us with a challenging situation.” Meanwhile, treasury yields eased in September, with gold reaching new all-time highs. Post period end, the US government entered a partial shutdown, meaning it will have to reduce some of its ‘non-essential’ daily operations. The most obvious channel of economic disruption will likely be the furlough of government workers, which could cause temporary unemployment to rise, with Trump threatening to make some of those job cuts permanent.

Tritax Big Box (portfolio weight 2.7%) and Segro (portfolio weight 3.8%), which are the only UK-listed REITs with meaningful exposure to data centres, were beneficiaries of a series of AI-related announcements in the UK in September. As part of US President Trump's visit to the UK, he and Prime Minister Starmer unveiled a "Tech Prosperity Deal" which will see tens of billions of pounds worth of investment by large American technology companies like Microsoft in the UK, which could transform the country into an "AI superpower". Tritax, the external manager to Tritax Big Box, announced a new project to build a data centre at the former Cottam coal-fired power station in Nottinghamshire, an area dubbed "Megawatt Valley". BBOX has right of first refusal on all of Tritax's data centre-related deals.

Cordiant Digital Infrastructure (portfolio weight 3.0%) published a strong Q1 trading update, highlighting a 9.0% increase in revenue and 9.6% increase in EBITDA year-on-year. This is due to the acquisition of Datacentre United to their portfolio in March 2025, along with a positive performance at their Emital and CRA assets.

Keppel DC REIT (portfolio weight 3.9%), announced it will raise c.SGD 400 million, in part to acquire a new data centre in Japan. This is expected to expand Keppel DC REIT’s presence in Japan, increasing the proportion of Japanese assets from 4.3% to 16.4% of AUM. Japan serves as a strategic interconnection gateway, as it links Asia and the Americas through an extensive subsea cable network. It has an existing 40 operational subsea cables, with eight additional subsea cables expected by 2027.

Overall, the Fund Manager maintains a positive outlook on the digital infrastructure sector, primarily due to the strong performance of underlying portfolio assets. As such, the digital infrastructure sector remains a key investment area for any investors seeking long-term returns.

*MSCI World IMI Core Real Estate IMI GBP

**Defined as the calendar month, as opposed to the valuation month.