Catalyst Capital buys €200m of assets for new €1bn fund

Catalyst Capital’s €1bn European core-plus real estate fund has bought €200m worth of assets in Germany, France and Poland.

The London-headquartered investment manager said Catalyst Core Plus European Property Fund (CCPEPF) has made six investments in Frankfurt, Berlin, Leipzig, Paris, Wroclaw and three new autobahn service stations in Germany.

The fund acquired the Fiat Campus in Frankfurt’s Eastend from LaSalle Investment Management. The property at Hanauer Landstrasse comprises 13,000sqm of space, of which 7,500sqm is to be re-let after refurbishment works have been completed.

In Berlin, Catalyst has acquired a cash and carry market in Ahrensfelde from a group of investors represented by Odyssey Real Estate. The property totals 15,500sqm and is fully let to a self-service wholesaler, Selgros.

Catalyst said it bought a 57,000sqm retail park, known as Pösna Park,  in Leipzig. 

In Paris, Catalyst has acquired the A City building in Rueil-Malmaison. The complex, totalling 8,500sqm, comprises a fully-refurbished, multi-let office building and a 22-unit convenience shopping mall and is 97% let.

In Wroclaw, Catalyst said it bought Nobilis Business House from Echo Investment. The 16,900sqm building, located on Marii Skłodowskiej-Curie street in Wrocław, was completed in late 2016.

The sixth investment comprises three service stations in Germany, are located in Zeven-Elsdorf, Ratingen and Pilsting.  Each asset is let on a 25-year lease.

Kean Hird, a partner of Catalyst and the manager of the fund, said: “All six investments provide stable, long-term income, which will generate attractive returns for our investors. We were able to acquire them within a few months of the first close of the fund because of our network of on-the-ground teams across Europe and understanding of local European markets.”

Catalyst announced the first close of CCPEPF in October 2017 with equity commitments of more than €455m from international institutional investors. Its final close is expected to be in the first quarter of 2018.

CCPEPF will have an indefinite life.