AXA RE buys core office in Helsinki for Caesar fund

AXA Real Estate Investment Managers has completed the acquisition of Polaris Vega, a core office building in Helsinki, Finland, from IVG Institutional Funds.

The acquisition has been made on behalf of the Caesar Fund, a regulated fund for Italian institutional investors launched by AXA Real Estate through its Italian regulated subsidiary, AXA Real Estate Investment Managers SGR.

The building, which comprises 5,922 m2 of Grade A office space, is located in the Polaris Business Park in the Leppävaara district, to the northwest of Helsinki’s central business district. The building is currently almost fully let and anchored by a major gas company on a long lease.

Polaris Vega, which is the ninth acquisition for the fund and the second in Finland, follows the recent purchase of a €41 mln office building in Ruoholahti.

Giorgio Pieralli, fund manager of the Caesar Fund, commented: 'The acquisition of this core asset in a prime office location demonstrates the fund’s approach to acquiring assets which we believe will produce secure, long-term income for our clients as well as the potential for future capital and income growth.'

Henrik Bastman, head of asset management in the Nordic region at AXA Real Estate, added: 'Completion of the Caesar Fund’s second transaction in Finland clearly illustrates AXA Real Estate's belief in the potential of the Nordic region to deliver value to our clients.'

The fund’s last close was in October 2012, having raised €209 mln in equity from 13 Italian institutional investors alongside AXA Insurance companies, exceeding its original target, giving it a total potential fund size of around €420 mln once fully invested.