UPDATE 1-BlackRock unlocks $4 bln British property fund from COVID freeze

(Adds detail, background)

By Carolyn Cohn

LONDON, Sept 30 (Reuters) - BlackRock said on
Wednesday it had lifted the suspension of its 3.1 billion pound
($4 billion) British property fund, one of several to resume
dealings after a six-month freeze due to uncertainty about
valuations.

Much of Britain's 70-billion-pound ($90 billion) property
fund sector was frozen in March as a result of the COVID-19
pandemic, but surveyors lifted an uncertainty warning earlier
this month.

Dealing in the BlackRock fund, which was suspended on March
20, will start again on Oct. 30, the U.S. asset manager said in
a statement emailed to Reuters, as the fund's assets were no
longer subject to "material uncertainty".

"The fund has sufficient liquidity to meet the current level
of redemption requests," the statement said.

Legal & General, Royal London, St
James's Place and Columbia Threadneedle have also lifted
the suspension of their funds.

Aegon, Aviva, Janus Henderson and
Standard Life Aberdeen said on Wednesday theirs remained
suspended. Some funds have said they are checking market
activity, redemption queues and cash levels before reopening.

Unlike many of the other funds, the BlackRock fund is aimed
at institutional, rather than retail investors, and does not
allow daily redemptions.

Regulators are unhappy about funds which invest in illiquid
assets but allow investors to take their money out frequently.

Many of these funds were also suspended after Britain's vote
to leave the European Union in 2016.

The Financial Conduct Authority proposed last month that
investors in property funds should wait up to six months before
they can get their money back to avoid a rush for the exit
leading to suspensions during market volatility.
($1 = 0.7778 pounds)
(Additional reporting by Sinead Cruise; Editing by Alexander
Smith)