South African investor Redefine Properties Ltd has acquired a 75 percent interest in Echo Prime Properties, an Echo Investment subsidiary, which owns 18 commercial income-producing assets, with a total value of ca. €1.18 billion. This volume makes it the largest real estate transaction in the history of the Polish market.
Instructed by Redefine Properties, Savills Poland team, led by valuation and consultancy and supported by investment, retail and office leasing departments, advised on the underwriting process. This included commercial due diligence, NOI audit and appraisal of the acquired portfolio of 10 retail and 8 office properties, totalling 428,000 sqm of GLA.
The landmark properties in the portfolio included: Pasaż Grunwaldzki in Wrocław, Galaxy in Szczecin, Galeria Echo in Kielce, Amber in Kalisz, Park Rozwoju in Warsaw, Malta Office Park in Poznań and A4 Business Park in Katowice.
“The transaction significantly advances Redefine’s international investment strategy, which is centred on geographic diversification and exploiting attractive yield spreads. The transaction presents a unique opportunity to create the leading commercial real estate platform in Poland and to build instant critical mass by acquiring a high quality retail-based portfolio with a strong local partner,” said Marc Wainer of Redefine Properties.
Tomasz Buras, Head of Savills Poland, said: “Redefine is yet another newcomer investor in Poland and it’s the first to break the symbolic threshold of €1 billion volume. We are very proud to have been involved in such a complex transaction. Our client was bidding against other global investors under a very tight schedule. We dedicated our best resources to working with Redefine in the analysis of such a large portfolio and offering the most extensive support throughout the tender process. Selecting the winning bid came down to more than just a price war as Echo Investment is to form a REIT with Redefine, keeping 25 percent of shares in Echo Prime Properties. It has been a great privilege to be part of this transaction and once again congratulations to all parties involved.”
