Barcelona, 6 October 2025 – Rockfield Real Estate & Ardian received the “World Class District Award for the Best Real Estate Fund, Management Company or Investment Group 2025” for their European Student Accommodation Fund (ARESAF) at the DISTRICT trade fair in Barcelona on 1 October. Their pan-European strategy for purpose-built student accommodation sets a new standard in European student housing with sustainable, community-focused housing solutions.
The DISTRICT fair in Barcelona is one of the leading international platforms shaping the future of real estate. The presentation of the World Class District Award 2025 for Best Real Estate Fund underlines that ARESAF is not only addressing the shortage of student housing in Europe, but also setting a new standard for purpose-built, sustainable living environments for students.
“This award reflects the strong demand for a pan-European, evergreen student housing platform. ARESAF offers investors both a first-class sustainable student housing solution and the benefits of European diversification.”
-Josep Bellmunt, Director Investments & Development Southern, Rockfield
The Ardian Rockfield European Student Accommodation Fund (ARESAF) was established in 2024 to address the structural shortage of high-quality student accommodation in Europe’s major university cities. With an investment capacity of nearly €1.3 billion, supported by CBRE Investment Management and other institutional investors, the strategy focuses on creating a diversified portfolio of sustainable, income-generating student residences in key European markets. The fund has built a strong pipeline, including the Nido portfolio and the Minervahaven project in the Netherlands. The latest transaction in 2025 was the purchase of a 333-bed residence in Aachen, one of the country’s most important academic centres. This was complemented in September 2025 by a €550 million green financing package, reaffirming the fund’s commitment to developing sustainable and energy-efficient student accommodation in line with ESG best practices and the Paris Agreement.
In September 2025, this was further reinforced with a €550 million green financing package, reaffirming the fund’s commitment to energy efficiency and ESG objectives.
“We are delighted to receive this award, which is a testament to all the hard work that the Ardian and Rockfield teams have put in over the past year. We are grateful to our investors for their support of our strategy and look forward with enthusiasm to the future, as we continue to expand the platform across the continent.”
-Edmund Eggins, Managing Director Real Estate, Ardian
