German lender pbb Deutsche Pfandbriefbank and global reinsurer Scor have provided a €105 mln loan to developer Apsys to finance a regional shopping centre in France.

German lender pbb Deutsche Pfandbriefbank and global reinsurer Scor have provided a €105 mln loan to developer Apsys to finance a regional shopping centre in France.

Pbb acted as arranger and agent, initially lending the full €105 mln prior to the syndication of €30 mln with Scor. The financing of the transaction is also supported by a mezzanine facility structured by Quarters Capital and closed in September 2014.

Apsys will use the loan to finance the development of a 37,600 m2 shopping centre in Metz, close to the borders of Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg. The mall, which is 65% pre-let, is part of a larger scheme that will see the development of eight further buildings and over 80,000 m2 of mixed use space, including residential, office and retail property.

Norbert Müller, head of real estate finance for Continental Europe West at pbb, said the loan was one of the bank’s more complex real estate transactions in the last few years. ‘It extends our commitments to selected development finance and exposure in French regional cities,’ he said.