Realcast: Family ways, London bottoms out, Ingka acquisitive, sustainability now tougher call
In the headlines this week:
Research from investment manager Aeon investment indicates that US and European family offices are increasingly turning to real estate in the search for yield. They increasingly like residential real estate. Post covid, more succession planning is occurring and younger generations are influencing more sustainable investment.
CBRE research into the central London office market reveals a surge in investments which is being driven particularly by Asian investors. Q1 investment volume, at £1.65 billion, was more than double Q1 2022 and it seems London’s office sector has touched bottom and is now rising again.
Garbe Logistics is active in Italy and undertaking its first development since opening its Italian office in 2021 It has since invested €230 million. Now it is beginning an 83,000 sq m development near Lombardy.
Ikea franchisee Ingka has been very active and having acquired the former Top shop flagship store at Oxford Circus in central London in 2021, has acquired a logistics park in Dublin and a major Paris shopping centre, Italie Deux.
Among a number of debt stories, asset manager Cheyne Capital Management has provided a £150 million senior loan to a joint venture between Castleforge and Malaysian partner Gamuda Berhad to fund the acquisition of Winchester House, in the City of London.
Also, Tristan Capital Partners’ EPISO 5 fund has obtained a €52.3 million structured finance package from Berlin Hyp to finance an office portfolio in Brussels, including a €9 million green loan.
In the increasing focus on sustainability, some players are struggling to comply with EU Taxonomy, which is a step beyond SFDR. They are now including social impact in their measurements and there are increased governance requirements to reach to achieve ESG targets. There is also now an increasing value chain approach to ESG compliance as the EU taxonomy influences both investors and occupiers.
In addition to measurement of sustainability there is also a need for valuation of green premiums and brown discounts and work is taking place with the European Commission to create a universal language to speed up the changes.
Click on the video to see the full discussion or listen to the podcast below.
