Europa Capital and White Star Real Estate have completed the sale of Plac Malachowskiego in central Warsaw to Generali Real Estate, on behalf of the Generali Group’s GEIH fund.
Plac Malachowskiego is a recently redeveloped 14,500 sqm landmark office building close to Saski Gardens and Plac Pilsudski between Warsaw CBD and the old town. The property is 92 percent leased with tenants including international law firm K & L Gates, global private equity firm CVC Capital Partners, the Polish law firm WBK, the co-working business space provider Rent24, the German bank Berlin Hyp, a number of boutique retailers and a restaurant. The building offers high quality space in one of the few historical buildings of scale in the CBD of Warsaw and the occupancy has risen from circa 30 percent at acquisition to over 90 percent in less than two years.
Europa Capital and White Star co-invested in the joint venture, while White Star provided asset and property management services for the Project.
Robert Martin, Founding Partner at Europa Capital, commented: “Investor appetite for Plac Malachowskiego was exceptionally strong which is a true endorsement of not just the quality of the building, but also the long income profile that we have created. We were able, with our partner, to unravel a deadlocked position when we acquired the investment and then created a truly core institutional product which is widely considered to be the best office building in Warsaw.”
Brian Patterson, Founder of White Star Real Estate, commented: “We are pleased to have identified and invested alongside Europa Capital in the exciting opportunity presented by Plac Malachowskiego. The high standard of this landmark building and the prestigious tenants we have attracted, together with the continued increased attractiveness of the Warsaw market to European institutional investors, are reflected in the valuation of the property.”
James Pennington, Director Asset Management at Europa Capital, added: “We saw a long list of occupiers wanting to take space in this building and we were careful to select tenants that complemented the quality of the investment. We are pleased that our efforts to create a prime end-product attracted such strong institutional buyer interest.”
