Slate Asset Management has reached agreement on the acquisition of X+bricks Group’s grocery-anchored real estate portfolio in Germany valued at over €1 bn.
The global alternative investment firm said the portfolio of 188 properties would be purchased in two tranches. Further details of the transaction were not disclosed.
Slate already has a substantial footprint in the German market, with more than 220 properties. Once the deal is completed, the firm said it will be one of the leading owners and operators of daily needs-based retail real estate in Germany.
Brady Welch, co-founding partner of Slate Asset Management, commented: ‘We are very pleased to be increasing our exposure to high-quality daily needs-based real estate in Germany, which we believe is a stable and defensive asset class with a positive growth outlook.’
Sven Vollenbruch, senior vice president at Slate Asset Management in Germany, said the firm planned to continue ‘strategically investing’ across its portfolio. ‘We look forward to further modernizing these properties with new infrastructure that will enhance their sustainability and convenience, with the goal of making these assets even more efficient, healthy, and attractive to tenants and end users.’
In connection with the transaction, Sascha Wilhelm, founder and CEO of X+bricks Group, is stepping down and selling his shareholding in the company. He will hand over the reins to X+bricks CFO Jorgen Verink.
Wilhelm said: ‘Fueled by the fascination to drive and grow new ideas, we have developed X+bricks into a leading platform for grocery-anchored retail properties in Germany over the past five years.
‘This success has been driven by a great team of partners and employees, whom I would like to thank today. Following last year’s transactions, we succeeded in profitably selling the entire X+bricks portfolio to a strategic and proven investor in this asset class with outstanding capabilities to further develop the assets.’
He concluded: ‘At this point, I have decided to focus on new growth opportunities in a time window where the real estate market offers many attractive prospects.’
Slate AM was advised on the transaction by Goodwin Procter, Mellum Capital, Gleiss Lutz, KPMG, PwC, Gleeds, and R3define. Evercore, White & Case, EY, and Fieldfisher advised X+bricks.
