Degi invests EUR 400m in Prague

German fund manager Degi, a unit of Aberdeen Property Investors, is upping its exposure to Eastern Europe with its EUR 400 mln investment in a business park in Prague. Earlier this month, Degi acquired a portfolio of seven properties in The Park complex from Signa Property Funds, the fund management arm of Austrian real estate group Signa Holding, for EUR 235 mln.

Since April, Degi has invested EUR 400 mln to acquire 11 of the 12 properties in The Park complex, which is located in Prague 4, an office sub-market in the Czech capital. The 11 buildings were developed in phases between 2003 and 2007, with a total lettable area of around 116,000 m². Around 98% of the properties have already been let to tenants such as Sony, IBM and DHL.

Degi has purchased the properties indirectly via property companies and will put buildings at The Park into several of its open-ended property funds. Four of the properties will be put into the DEGI International fund, which invests in commercial properties worldwide, said Robert W.F. Bauer, Degi's senior executive of marketing, based in Frankfurt.

'This latest investment extends Degi's engagement in Eastern Europe and will enable investors to benefit from the dynamic development of the EU member states in Eastern Europe,' said Bärbel Schomberg, CEO of Degi's management board.

The Park is close to the Centrum Chodov shopping mall, one of the largest shopping mall in the region, with tenants such as German clothing retailer Promod and UK mobile network operator Vodafone. According to Degi, around half of all Prague workers are based in the Prague 4 sub-market.