During 2024, the U.S. surged ahead, with the S&P 500 climbing over 26%, driven by tech performance and easing inflation. Europe moved forward steadily, while Asia faced turbulence — notably Japan’s Nikkei plunging 12% in a single day, and China’s markets shedding a quarter of their value. The takeaway? Volatility has returned, and agility is paramount.

The Nordics remained composed amid the global noise. A modest 0.6% GDP rise, dovish tones from the central banks, and improving credit conditions added a dose of optimism. While commercial real estate grappled with the new rate environment, balance sheets across the sector strengthened and sentiment stabilized.

Yet the real story unfolded beyond traditional markets. Alternative investments outperformed, with Nordic real estate, high-yield bonds, and private credit emerging as the standout themes of 2024. From sustainable urban development to resilient income-generating rental portfolios, the Nordics proved attractive for institutional capital. Yield-focused investors, wary of volatility, gravitated toward high-yield bonds, enticed by attractive risk-reward profiles.

Private credit also gained strong momentum. As banks pulled back, agile investors leaned into private debt markets, capturing flexible and higher-yielding opportunities. While this trend is already well established in Continental Europe and the U.S., the Nordic region still presents significant potential to partner with local borrowers and craft tailored, yield-enhancing solutions.

At Altaal, we have not merely participated in these shifts — we’ve helped shape them. In 2024, we redefined our platform to cater to growing investor appetite for direct exposure to real assets and credit. Our merger with Nordic Credit Partners — led by Goldman Sachs and CVC alumni Jakob Eliasson — brought additional credit expertise into our fold.

We further fortified our capital base through the onboarding of institutional co-owners, empowering us to co-invest meaningfully alongside our partners. This alignment helped facilitate direct acquisitions of real assets exceeding EUR 100 million in a challenging fund-raising market.

Our footprint now spans the Nordic capitals, anchored by an active ownership position in Nordanö — the region’s leading real estate advisor to institutional investors.

2024 did more than underscore the growing relevance of alternatives. It affirmed that the future belongs to those willing to embrace a new frontier of investing — and Altaal bolstered up to pave the way.

2024 was a productive and transformative year for Altaal’s asset management operations, with continued enhancements in customer experience and ESG integration across all platforms. Our focus remained on operational excellence, strategic acquisitions, and delivering strong relative returns.

Strategy I: Energy and Transport

Our ILCO platform sustained its organic growth, achieving a 15% NAV increase in 2024. A highlight of the year was the successful acquisition of an additional vessel by year-end, further scaling the platform and reinforcing its role as a stable, income-generating infrastructure component within Altaal’s real asset strategy.

Strategy II: Liquid Real Estate

Under the leadership of Portfolio Manager Sven Dahlin, our liquid real estate strategy outperformed the broader market. The strategy heavily outperformed benchmarks and delivered a return of 21% since inception (November 2023 – April 2025), surpassing OMX SX35PI Real Estate (+6%), CREX Real Estate (+5%) and OMX SPI All-share (+13%).

Strategy III: Select Housing

Bolivo entered an active investment phase, driven by increasingly attractive residential market fundamentals. In anticipation of strategic acquisitions, the platform successfully conducted a targeted equity issue involving both existing and new shareholders, thereby significantly boosting its cash position ahead of planned 2025 deployments.

Strategy IV: Serviced Offices

In Helsinki, Colony invested in targeted capital improvements, enhancing portfolio standards to best-in-class resulting in over 8,000 sqm of new leases. A notable achievement was the acquisition of a prime CBD asset from a distressed German seller — a strategic move that adds both quality and scale to our portfolio. Colony also increased its ownership in Fleming Properties to 37%, becoming its largest shareholder. We have assumed full asset management responsibility and are now integrating Fleming into Colony’s successful leasing platform.

In Brussels, our 20,000 sqm office and lab property, Omega Court, saw major upgrades, including the introduction of a high-quality tenant restaurant and successful geothermal test drillings. The asset achieved a remarkable turnaround on the leasing front: by year-end, it was fully let to tenants including SONY, Circle K and Stanley & Stella, all on long-term leases. Acquired in 2021 at 50% vacancy, Omega Court now stands as a testament to Altaal’s ability to reposition assets and unlock value in international markets. The Brussels office sector remains fundamentally robust and offers compelling potential for long-term, core-plus strategies.

Strategy V: Liquid Credit

Our Liquid Credit Platform delivered a record year for our Nordic strategy. We continued to reduce credit and financial risk while managing challenged holdings, either through value recovery or timely exits. Despite elevated primary market activity and rising prices, we maintained discipline, only pursuing highly selective investments. With more than a decade of experience in Nordic credit, we understand when to be prudent and when to be opportunistic.

Strategy VI: Private Credit

Our Private Credit Platform remained a beacon of stability, preparing for the fund’s maturity and the launch of a new vintage. As demand for private credit continues to rise, our platform — backed by strategic insights, an agile capital base, and a deep local network — is well-positioned to deliver compelling, risk-adjusted returns, far removed from daily market volatility.

At Altaal, we are committed to building a next-generation investment platform, where real assets and credit strategies converge under aligned co-investment and trusted partnerships. Our entrepreneurial spirit, combined with institutional rigor, enables us to create bespoke investment solutions with enduring impact. During 2024 we took the initiative to engage in asset backed finance through our Capital Solution strategy.

To realize this ambition, we have focused on securing the fundamentals: a profitable and expanding asset base, supported by discretionary access to a robust balance sheet. This strategic foundation enabled key milestones in 2024, including the investment in Nordanö. These landmark transactions brought leading talent and capabilities into the group and have laid the groundwork for cost synergies and enhanced client delivery across strategies.

With a 106% year-on-year increase in revenues, we have not only scaled but also strengthened. By supporting our platforms with capital and active governance, we are ensuring lasting value creation across asset classes. With fee-generating cash flow to reinvest, Altaal is strongly positioned to drive sustainable growth and innovation into 2025 and beyond.

The team continued to develop, and more talent is planned to be onboarded in the coming years. Stefan Gattberg was appointed Managing Partner for 2025 with Jenny Penser as Chair.