Crossbay, the European urban logistics arm of investment manager Mark, has acquired four properties in France for a total of €30 mln.
Representing 30,000 m2, three assets are located in Paris and one in Marseille, taking the value of Crossbay’s France portfolio to over €210 mln across 24 assets.
Crossbay aims to secure €500 mln in assets under management in France within the next two years. These latest transactions follow the acquisition of a 7,500 m2 multi-storey site in Paris, at the beginning of Q4 2021.
Louis Radiguet, managing director of Crossbay France, said: ‘After a successful 2021, 2022 should prove even more dynamic with a secured pipeline currently being executed representing approximately 40,000 m2.’
He added: ‘The Paris region, France's largest market, will remain a priority for Crossbay. However, we will also be targeting other main French conurbations as part of a strategy of accelerated geographical diversification.’
The acquisition is the latest in Crossbay’s €1.5 bn expansion strategy across Europe’s core real estate markets. Its portfolio includes locations in Germany, Poland, Italy, France, Spain, Belgium and The Netherlands, where it recently acquired four sites.
Launched in May 2020 by private equity real estate investment manager Mark, the platform is seeking to capitalise upon the continent’s e-commerce boom by targeting urban logistics assets, primarily single-user distribution centres, in locations no more than 90 minutes from the nearest city centre.
Crossbay currently manages 800,000 m2 of warehousing space in total, making it one of Europe’s largest pure play urban logistics portfolios. Tenants include leading 3PLs and e-commerce brands such as FedEx, DHL and Amazon.
In December 2020, MARK announced a successful capital raise for Crossbay, securing €550 mln in equity commitments from a global range of investors. Investors included the Townsend Group, CBRE GI, Credit Suisse, Nuveen and QInvest.
The fundraise was then followed by a €400 mln debt facility from investment bank Citi in January 2021 to help further fund Crossbay's growth and European expansion.
