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WOOD & Company, the leading investment bank in CEE, has acquired, for its real estate fund, BBC 1 and BBC 1 Plus, an office complex with 25,500 sqm of gross leasable area in Bratislava central business district, from Austrian real estate group CA Immo. The price of the transaction has not been disclosed.
With this acquisition, WOOD & Company continues to expand its real estate portfolio in Slovakia and the Czech Republic. The group manages its real estate assets through two real estate sub-funds (the Office sub-fund and the Retail sub-fund), which are open to qualified investors. The BBC 1 and BBC 1 Plus buildings are becoming part of the Office sub-fund.
“This acquisition strengthens our position in the office property market and our presence in the Bratislava central business district where we also own the BBC 5 office complex. The BBC 1 and BBC 1 Plus are LEED Gold certified buildings and offer fully flexible office space suitable for tenants of all sizes. In addition, the buildings have development potential that will add to their attractiveness in the future,” commented Martin Šmigura, WOOD & Company Investment Director.
The sale of both buildings is in line with CA Immo’s long-term plan. As part of its ongoing divestment strategy, the Austrian group is disposing of selected assets outside its core investment markets, reinvesting the proceeds in the development of new projects and other external acquisitions. Over the past three years, the group has left several European countries besides Slovakia, namely: Slovenia, Bulgaria, Russia, Ukraine and Croatia; while, in other countries (Hungary, Romania and Poland), it has discontinued its activities outside their capitals.
The BBC 1 office complex in Prievozská Street provides 25,500 sqm of gross leasable area. The BBC 1 Plus building was completed in 2012 as an extension of the existing BBC 1 facility, bringing to the market 15,900 sqm of leasable area, spread over 13 floors of grade-A+ office space and an underground car park. Hailed as the first green office building in Bratislava, BBC 1 Plus was also the first building to be awarded a LEED Gold certificate. Based on international criteria, the sustainability certificate demonstrates that the building meets the standards of environmentally-friendly and energy-efficient operations. Situated close to the central bus station, BBC 1 features a convenient location in the capital, and has excellent transport links with both Bratislava Airport and the historic centre.
“Since March 2020, investment activity has been defined by uncertainty, a wait-and-see approach and, oftentimes, the postponement of transactions. This has resulted in a year-on-year volume decline of 20-30% across the whole of Europe, including Slovakia. The sale of the BBC 1 and BBC 1 Plus buildings is the first major transaction in the office sector in Bratislava since the outbreak of the pandemic. As such, it represents a milestone in investment activity and in office segment transactions expected in Slovakia in 2021,” added Rudolf Nemec, Head of Investment Consulting Team at JLL Slovakia. Law firm Bartošík Šváby s.r.o. acted as a legal advisor to WOOD & Company in connection with the transaction.
About WOOD & Company
WOOD & Company is the leading investment bank in CEE, focused on providing corporate finance and capital markets services, securities brokerage, and asset management. It was founded in 1991 and is headquartered in Prague, with offices in Bratislava, Warsaw, Milan, Bucharest and London.
The firm’s real estate activities are managed under the WOOD & Company Real Estate umbrella, the local market leader in the commercial real estate segment, with more than 249,000 sqm of leasable area. In addition to operating in the Czech Republic, where it manages administrative buildings Hadovka Office Park, Harfa Office Park and The Greenline, as well as shopping centres Galerie Harfa and Centrum Krakov, WOOD & Company Real Estate is also building its Slovak portfolio successfully, with the Westend Tower, Aupark Tower, Lakeside Park 01, BBC5 and BBC 1 office buildings. Find out more at wood-re.com.