IWS Equity has launched a real estate growth fund with a $100-million head start.

The IWS Real Estate Growth Fund seeks to raise $300 million. Toronto-based IWS Equity has received an investment of up to $100 million from its unidentified anchor investor, the company said in a news release.

The fund is targeting 20% returns on investments in high-quality underserved mid-market real estate across Canada.

Founded in 2019, IWS Equity is a joint-venture led by John Ho of Institutional Mortgage Capital and Paul Aiello of Wadsworth Mortgage Capital. A privately owned investment fund manager, IWS serves institutional and private wealth clients across Canada. 

IWS says the new real estate fund builds on the company’s prior equity fund, which has about $200 million invested in all segments of the Canadian real estate market..

“Our equity platform has proven itself, leveraging our principals’ long-standing institutional approach to delivering premium risk-adjusted returns for investors,” said Ho, the company’s CEO.

IMC is related to IWS Equity. The IMC team has originated and closed about $13.5 billion of new commercial mortgages across all Canadian markets and sectors.

The company says it provides loans on all types of underlying real estate assets, including stabilized, transitional, construction and pre-development.