EUR 120 million foreign capital increase for real estate in 1Q 2013
Foreign real estate investors have brought in the first three months more than EUR 120 million to the capital of the companies they own in Romania, a level that represents 7.5 times the amount brought in the same period of last year, EUR 16 million, according to ONRC (National Trade Registry).
The biggest subscription was made for Tower Center, registered in Cyprus, which brought EUR 33.4 million for the Romanian registered company. The company owns the office building with the same name located in Piata Victoriei, Bucharest.
The subscriptions are generally only of a few million euros, and most of the companies are investment vehicles registered in Cyprus or Netherlands but also in Spain or Luxembourg.
Among the companies which benefit from the supplementary amounts from the investors are Goldale Real Estate, with an infusion of EUR 24.8 million, Masterage Imobiliare, which capital was increased with EUR 21.8 million (both companies are owned by the Spanish group Riofisa and by the businessman Ion Ţiriac) and CEIF Industrial Epsilon, with EUR 5.6 million, from the Australian investment fund Valad.
The American group Prologis has increased the capital of one of its subsidiaries in Romania, Prologis Joiţa (Giurgiu), with EUR 2.6 million, while the Greek businessman Ioannis Papalekas has increased with EUR 2 million the capital of Star Imob Construct, a company through which he bought City Mall, the bankrupt commercial centre. The mall is currently under process of renovation for its reconversion in office building.
Investors’ money also went towards companies outside Bucharest. Therefore, the capital of the company Timişoara Office Building was increased with EUR 4.23 million, while several vehicles registered in Cyprus - Land Târgu Mureş One, Land Suceava One, Land Sibiu One – benefit for funds totalizing nearly EUR 12 million. The companies are controlled by Rewo Management, a Volksbank group company, with real estate activities. At the same time, the fund Flavus Investiţii supplemented the capital of Coresi Business Park with EUR 4.5 million.
Romanian investors have also brought money in their real estate companies, the capital of Domus Stil, owned by the Negoiţă brothers, was increased with EUR 2.8 million.
Other real estate investors active on the Romanian market in the first three months were Talia Developments, with Spanish shareholders who invested EUR 4.7 million and Town Imobiliare, which brought to the capital of its Bucharest company the amount of EUR 1.3 million. (source: zf.ro)
