As the boundaries between infrastructure and real estate grow ever more hazy, social infrastructure, a hybrid investment theme born at the nexus of the two, is pervading investment portfolios — and becoming more amorphous all the while.

Social infrastructure is a moving target: hard to pin down and constantly in flux. In broad terms, industry professionals define it as real assets that provide communities with essential services and contribute directly to societal well-being, cohesion and productivity (think healthcare, education and housing). Hugo Llewelyn, CEO of Newcore Capital, a specialist real estate investment manager focused on social infrastructure assets in the United Kingdom, describes it through the lens of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs pyramid. True social infrastructure, he says, is characterized by the two bottom levels: physiological needs (air, water, food, shelter, sleep) and safety needs (security, health and well-being, financial security).

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