Only 23 private equity real estate funds recorded final closings during the fourth quarter of 2013, according to Institutional Real Estate FundTracker. However, what the group lacked in numbers, it more than made up for in firepower. The 23 funds collectively raised $23 billion (€17.0 billion) of equity capital; that’s right, the average fund size equalled $1 billion (€739 million), thanks to eight fund closings of significantly more than $1 billion. The strong fourth-quarter showing pushed up the 2013 year-end totals to 118 fund closings with aggregate equity capital of $70.5 billion (€52.1 billion), a nearly 20 percent increase from 2012’s total of $59.0 billion (€43.6 billion).

Leading the charge was Lone Star Funds with its Lone Star Real E