Allianz Real Estate has acquired a CHF200m (€189m) Swiss residential development in a forward funding deal.

Allianz, acting on behalf of several Allianz Group companies, said it has bought the Les Hauts du Château residential development located in Bellevue, near Geneva.

The development, which will offer nearly 300 apartments over roughly 20,000sqm of rentable areas, has already started and expected to complete in 2022.

Martin Kaleja, CEO of Allianz Real Estate in Switzerland, said: “This investment, our largest ever deal to date in Switzerland, offers an attractive yield and will help strengthen our position in Geneva, a strategic location for us.”

Kaleja said the deal reflects the company’s strategy to invest in sustainable real estate developments in major Swiss cities.

“As co-founders of the “Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance”, we have committed to render our investment portfolio climate-neutral by 2050, and this is just one more step in this direction.”

Michael Steiner, head of transactions and asset management for Allianz Real Estate in Switzerland, said: “Les Hauts du Château represents the next step in expanding and renewing our portfolio in Switzerland, leveraging on our local team knowledge of the asset class and market.

“The assets represent excellent growth opportunities due to the local demand for high quality and well-connected rental accommodation in Switzerland.”

With a Swiss portfolio size in excess of CHF5bn, Allianz Real Estate has deployed over CHF500m in similar residential development acquisitions across Switzerland in the last five years.