Morgan Stanley commercial real estate fund gives $700M back to investors

The Wall Street Journal’s Craig Karmin describes what he called a “very unusual move,” by Morgan Stanley in cutting a deal to return $700 million to investors in one of its real estate funds, in the video above. The Journal outlines the options for the investment fund, which has a total of $4.7 billion to spend and a June deadline to invest in commercial real estate. Karmin said it could spell the end of private equity real estate investment at Morgan Stanley, a “last man standing” in commercial real estate investment among huge banks, as other players have sold off their business or announced they are contemplating doing so in recent months.