The fund has got commitments from international investors, financial institutions, multilateral agencies and high-net worth investors in the United States, the Middle East and Europe for investing in Indian real estate.

The fund is expected to close in the next five to six weeks.

In May 2005, Kotak Mahindra Investments started Kotak Realty Fund by setting up of the Kotak India Real Estate Fund I - a $100-million fund for investing in real estate.

Currently, HDFC and IL&FS have global funds where international investors have parked money for investing in real estate opportunities in India.

While HDFC raised a $750 million international fund in September last year, IL&FS Investment Managers raised $502.57 million in its international fund in May 2006.

Kotak''s new fund would seek equity investments in development projects and enterprise level investments in real estate operating companies. These would include hotels, healthcare, retailing, education and property management.

The proposed fund will also focus on the northern region. Till now, Kotak Realty''s first fund has made most of its investments in the southern and western regions of the country.