Standard Life Investments has suspended trading in its £2.7bn UK Real Estate Fund.
The fund manager has received a flood of redemption requests following the result of the EU referendum.
The suspension of trading or redemptions will “end as soon as practicable” and be reviewed “at least every 28 days”.
The move mirrors that made by fund managers in 2008 following the collapse of Lehman Brothers, which resulted in some funds being closed for years as those managing funds struggled to return capital when faced with depressed asset values.
From July 1: EU vote leaves funds fighting to halt redemptions
From April 15: Is it all going wrong as UK investment volumes plunge?
A spokesman for Standard Life said that “following an increase in redemption requests as a result of uncertainty for the UK commercial real estate market following the EU referendum result” it suspended trading “in order to protect the interests of all investors in the fund and to avoid compromising investment returns from the range, mix and quality of assets within the portfolio”.
Last week also saw Standard Life reduce the value of its portfolio by 5% as part of a “fair value adjustment”, but this was not enough to prevent investors wanting to take out their cash.
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