Shinhan Alternative Investment Management and US-based private equity fund Carlyle Group have agreed to create a fund to jointly invest in prime infrastructure loans, according to industry sources Monday.

The fund, tentatively named “Shinhan Carlyle Infra Credit Fund I” will be launched after both firms finalize the agreement. The $600 million worth fund will be invested in overseas prime infrastructure loans in the US and Europe, they said.

“Shinhan and Carlyle have discussed the matter for nearly six months,” said an industry official, who wished to remain anonymous. “It is expected to play a catalytic role in global alternative investments amid the contracted market during the coronavirus pandemic.”

While Shinhan and Carlyle excavate investments, Hana Financial Investment, the brokerage unit of Hana Financial Group, will undertake the total amount of funds and sell-down to local institutional investors. Their target annual return rate is likely to between 6 to 8 percent.

Meanwhile, the infrastructure investment fund will also mark the second joint project for Shinhan and Hana after their chiefs -- Chairman Cho Yong-byoung and Kim Jung-tai -- signed a memorandum of understanding to expand global entries together in May.

Through the alliance, the two major lenders signed a contract with the African Export-Import Bank a month earlier to participate in a $1 billion syndicated loan.

By Jie Ye-eun (yeeun@heraldcorp.com)