Coffee with Craig Show – daily CRE news covering the CEE region, Monday, February 6, with Winston Norman, Editor and Chief of EuropaProperty.com.
Greenman expands into Poland with the acquisition of Newbridge
The Greenman Group, the parent company of the grocery real estate investment fund manager Greenman Investments, announced its expansion into Poland with the acquisition of Newbridge Poland.
The Group will rebrand the acquisition to Greenman Poland which will be led by Barbara Wojdełko, the former managing partner at Newbridge. Greenman Poland has €150 million assets under management, comprising retail parks and shopping centres totalling 87,000 sqm.
Johnnie Wilkinson, CEO of Greenman Group, commented: “This acquisition confirms our commitment to greater European expansion.”
Barbara Wojdełko, CEO of Greenman Poland, said: “we are looking forward to expanding our assets under management in Poland and the broader Central Eastern European region with further acquisitions for the Greenman European Supermarket fund, as well as for other European funds and mandates.”
Patron Capital and 7R sell warehouse in Poland
Patron Capital in partnership with 7R has announced the sale of a 30,000 sqm logistics asset in Goleniów, Poland to an undisclosed institutional investor for €22 million.
Built for Hultafors Group in 2021 on a ‘build-to-suit’ basis the environmentally friendly warehouse is located close to the Polish-German border near Szczecin, Poland’s seventh-largest city known for its major seaport that connects with the Baltic Sea.
“The completion of this deal demonstrates that despite the economic uncertainty we have seen over the last 12 months, investor appetite for modern, well-located energy efficient European logistics assets remains robust,” says Wiktor Lesinski, Investment Director at Patron Capital.
“We are seeing increasing interest from investment funds in high-quality projects that offer environmentally friendly solutions with a visible reduction in energy consumption and a concomitant reduction in carbon footprint,” says Katarzyna Laszkowska, Private Debt Director at 7R Capital Markets.
Bonard reports another positive year for PBSA sector
The latest BONARD Student Housing Annual Report shows the PBSA sector has registered another strong year with occupancy rates and rents rising.
While soaring inflation, interest rates and rising costs in the last quarter of 2022 have slowed down investment transactions, the overall outlook is positive and experts expect the sector to keep growing in the next two years. Growth will be driven by increased demand, especially from international students – and in some locations, supply will actually struggle to keep up with demand.
BONARD CEO Samuel Vetrak said: “The PBSA sector was affected in 2022 by the macroeconomic conditions, but less so than other asset classes. In 2023, we can see even greater institutional capital demand in this asset class.”
bnt attorneys and BSJP join forces in CEE
bnt attorneys in CEE and BSJP, one of Poland’s premier full-service legal practices, have teamed up to create a legal powerhouse operating across the new EU countries, spanning from Tallin to Sofia.
As a result of the merger, bnt partners will join BSJP’s Warsaw office. The new firm will operate under the combined brand of BSJP | bnt in Poland. For BSJP the merger means becoming the largest firm in Poland with offices in CEE.
“With such a well-established partner we will boost our joint business potential in all jurisdictions and provide even better services for our clients,” says Margareta Sovova, Managing Partner International at bnt attorneys in CEE.
“We are proud to create something new and unique both in the CEE and locally: a regional law firm with strong local participants in all countries in which it is present and the first large Polish law firm with such a reach,” underlines Dag Nilsson, Managing Partner at BSJP.
