Banimmo announces sale of Sirius building to the closed-end German fund Signa

This asset is a built to suit office development which is going to host the new headquarters of Mobistar, the second largest mobile telecom operator in Belgium. The building is located in the Da Vinci Park (Avenue du Bourget 3 in Brussels), adjacent to a future RER railway station and represents 29,600 m² above ground. It is leased on a long term basis (15 years). This building meets the highest standards of energy efficiency, achieving exceptional level of “E factor” i.e. E79 while the recent environmental regulations have been set at E90. The asset is valued at €70 million.

Since January 2005 the purchaser SIGNA Property Funds has been based in Duesseldorf with the goal to develop and distribute innovative and high-quality real estate investment concepts for high-net worth individuals and institutional investors. SIGNA as a financial services firm is independent of any banks and benefits from the know-how and the market standing of its parent company – SIGNA Holding – which is one of the leading players in the Austrian real estate market. SIGNA therefore is strong with innovative financial product concepts and a quick transfer into marketable products which have helped SIGNA to gain a foothold in the relevant segments of the market for closed-ended real estate funds. This transaction represents their first acquisition in Brussels.

Banimmo is working on three transactions, this sale being the second transaction of the second semester, following the completion of a private issue of real estate certificates on the Atlantic House building in Antwerp.

Banimmo’s successful asset trading activity, despite quite adverse market conditions, will enable the company to meet its objectives in terms of portfolio rotation.

This operation enables Banimmo to bring its financial debt on total balance sheet at a level below 50%, positioning the group ideally to pursue additional acquisitions in a buyer’s market.

This sale will also allow Banimmo to achieve a year result in line with the IPO objectives.

Source: Banimmo