New Genesta fund buys 2 office assets in Helsinki for €36m

Genesta’s newly launched Nordic Real Estate Fund II (GNRE Fund II) has acquired two prime office assets, Antinkatu 1 and Bulevardi 21, in the centre of Helsinki for just over €36 mln.

The vendor was Senate Properties, a Finnish government-owned enterprise.

Antinkatu 1 offers around 11,200 m2 of lettable office space and is located in the Kamppi district. The building was constructed in 1952 to house the Finnish state printing house and was later refurbished and redeveloped for office use. The National Audit Office and TE-Services are currently the main tenants.

Bulevardi 21 offers around 10,100 m2 of lettable space. The property was built in 1961 as an office for the Finnish state including the Local Registrar Office which currently occupies several floors in the building.

'The properties fit perfectly into the investment strategy of Genesta’s new fund. Both assets have excellent locations and offer interesting renovation and leasing opportunities,' commented Genesta’s CEO David Neil.

Managing director of Senate Properties Jari Sarjo added: 'This divestment supports the Finnish Government's real-estate property and premises strategy, according to which we aim to release the equity tied in properties located in the most valuable addresses in city centres, to allocate equity in the core operations of the Government.'

Closing is expected by the end of 2015.

Nordic fund manager Genesta secured €152 mln of commitments from four institutional investors last week in the first close for GNRE Fund II.

The vehicle focuses on office, retail and logistics property investments predominantly in Stockholm, Copenhagen, Helsinki and Oslo. It pursues value-add investments and target a net return to investors of 13-14%.

Genesta said it hopes to raise additional capital during June and end up with €350-400 mln in equity commitments. This would mean Nordic Real Estate Fund II would be twice the size of its predecessor.

Allan Strand Olesen, CIO, who joined Genesta in 2012 and is the firm's chief investment officer, manages the new fund.