Spain’s Banco Popular has confirmed it has signed a preliminary agreement to sell its real estate asset management unit to a consortium of Kennedy Wilson and Värde Partners for an undisclosed amount.
Spain’s Banco Popular has confirmed it has signed a preliminary agreement to sell its real estate asset management unit to a consortium of Kennedy Wilson and Värde Partners for an undisclosed amount.
In a statement to stock market regulator CNMV, Madrid-based Banco Popular said the operation involves around €9.35 bn worth of loans as well as another €6.5 bn of assets managed by the firm, known as Aliseda.
As part of the agreement, Kennedy Wilson and Värde will set up a new company in which Banco Popular will retain a minority stake.
According a news report by agency AFP, the transaction price amounts to some €800 mln.
The purchase is the latest in Spain by partners Kennedy Wilson and Värde. In early September, the US investors bought the real estate arm of lender Catalunya Bank for some €40 mln.
Spanish bank Popular appointed KPMG earlier this year to sell its asset management arm in an effort to take advantage of the increased liquidity in the sector.
The move followed the successful sale in September of Caixa's real estate arm to TPG for around €185 mln. TPG Capital emerged ahead of bidders Bridgepoint, Fortress and Starwood to acquire a 51% interest in Caixa bank's Servihabitat Gestión Inmobiliaria.
Bankia, Spain's third-largest banking group, has recently also completed the sale of its real estate servicing arm to private equity group Cerberus for around €90 mln. Bankia Habitat manages a €5.5 bn portfolio across the country consisting of real estate assets worth €2.9 bn and another €2.6 bn of development loans.
Similarly, Banco Santander hired PwC to sell Altamira, which manages over €3.6 bn of property assets in the country. The lender is said to have reached an agreement on the sale to Apollo European Principal Finance Fund II.
