Ares Management and PSP Investments Launch $2.4 Billion U.S. Logistics Joint Venture Managed by Marq Logistics

Ares Management Corporation and the Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments) announced Sept. 16 the formation of a joint venture to invest up to $2.4 billion in U.S. logistics real estate, with Marq Logistics serving as the platform's operator and asset manager.

The venture launches with a seed portfolio of 14 logistics properties totaling 5.2 million square feet concentrated in California, Texas and New Jersey — three of the country's most active industrial hubs. The partnership pairs an Ares Real Estate fund with PSP Investments' capital in a strategy centered on cash-flowing assets in markets characterized by strong demand and constrained supply.

Deal Structure and Seed Portfolio

The joint venture combines Ares Real Estate's vertically integrated logistics investment capabilities and sourcing network with PSP Investments' institutional capital base. Marq Logistics, which manages a global portfolio of more than 2,250 properties totaling over 655 million square feet, will lead sourcing and manage the assets held within the venture.

The 14-property seed portfolio spans key U.S. industrial submarkets in California, Texas and New Jersey. The venture's broader mandate targets attractive, cash-flowing assets in high-growth markets, with demand drivers cited by the partners including onshoring activity, digital infrastructure buildout and the continued expansion of e-commerce.

Eastdil Secured Savills acted as financial advisor and Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal advisor to Ares. Cushman & Wakefield acted as financial advisor and Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP served as legal advisor to PSP Investments.

What the Partners Are Saying

"This joint venture with a leading institutional investor like PSP Investments underscores the strong positioning that Ares has established across our U.S. logistics footprint," said Dave Fazekas, Head of North America Logistics in Ares Real Estate. "The acceleration of onshoring, buildout of digital infrastructure and growing influence of e-commerce continue strengthening the investment fundamentals for strategically placed logistics facilities. We are proud to expand Ares' longstanding relationship with PSP Investments as we leverage our collective scale and experience to identify compelling deployment opportunities and deliver value for tenants, communities and investors."

"Best-in-class operators, in sectors where our conviction is strongest — that is what our real estate strategy is built around, and this joint venture has both," said Laurence Bastien, Managing Director, Real Estate Investments, Americas at PSP Investments. "The U.S. logistics sector benefits from durable demand drivers and structurally constrained supply in the submarkets that matter most. Partnering with Ares allows us to invest in high-quality assets at scale and alongside an operating platform with the capabilities to drive value at the asset level."

Market Backdrop: Logistics Fundamentals at an Inflection Point

The joint venture arrives as U.S. industrial and logistics real estate shows signs of stabilization following a period of elevated vacancy. National industrial vacancy rates declined modestly in the second quarter of 2026, with absorption outpacing new supply deliveries during the quarter — a dynamic that had been absent for several years as the pandemic-era construction pipeline worked its way through the market.

Smaller industrial assets have maintained tighter vacancy than large-format distribution facilities, while Class A warehouses over one million square feet saw vacancy compress to approximately 5.8% by mid-2026. Asking rents at the national level have shown modest year-over-year growth, with the majority of tracked markets posting positive annual rent movement at mid-year.

The JV's emphasis on "strategically placed" and "cash-flowing" assets reflects a positioning toward stabilized, modern product in core submarkets — a segment where vacancy has tightened more quickly than the broader industrial market.

About the Partners

Ares Management Corporation (NYSE: ARES) is a global alternative investment manager with over $671 billion of assets under management as of June 30, 2026, operating across credit, real estate, private equity and infrastructure. Marq Logistics, Ares Real Estate's logistics platform, focuses on the development and operation of modern logistics facilities globally.

PSP Investments manages C$320.6 billion of net assets as of March 31, 2026, on behalf of pension plans covering Canada's federal public service, the Canadian Forces, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Reserve Force. The Ottawa-headquartered investor maintains its principal business office in Montréal, with additional offices in New York, London and Hong Kong.