French retail specialist Apsys said on Wednesday that it has refinanced the Centrum Posnania retail asset with a 10-year, €300 mln senior loan from Allianz.
The financing transaction comes shortly after the acquisition by Apsys of the remaining stake it did not already own in the shopping centre.
The 100,000 m2 iconic property in Poznan has become, in less than three years since it opened in October 2016, a supra regional retail and lifestyle destination in Poland, welcoming now 12.5 million visitors a year.
The asset has been continuously outperforming initial expectations, Apsys said. For the first nine months of 2019, its turnover increased 17%, while its footfall rose by around 10%.
'The achievement is a very valuable recognition of the prime quality as well as the leading strategic position of Posnania in its region,' said Maurice Bansay, founding president of Apsys.
Fabrice Bansay, Apsys' CEO added: 'It also gives Apsys' confidence to continue develop its pipeline of iconic projects and recognizes the operating performance of Apsys team in Poland.'
Apsys manages 23 shopping centers in Poland, and currently has a development pipeline of 120,000 m2, including a mixed-use project in a large regional city and a residential project in Warsaw.
Roland Fuchs, head of European Real Estate Finance at Allianz Real Estate, commented: 'We are pleased to have originated and executed this large senior lending opportunity of a well-performing prime asset in Europe which benefits from strong local market fundamentals. We are convinced that this retail asset will remain the leader in its region and generate solid future cash flows for Allianz.'
With this transaction the senior debt fund managed by Allianz Real Estate approaches an investment volume of €2 bn, according to Fuchs.
