Procisa To List La Finca Business Park As A Socimi

12 May 2016 – Cinco Días

The real estate company Procisa is finalising a major corporate restructuring process, which will culminate in the IPO of its office business. The company, renowned for having constructed the luxury La Finca urbanisation in Pozuelo de Alarcón (Madrid) will separate its activity into two companies. The residential development business will be called La Finca Procisa and the RE asset business will be called La Finca Global Assets.

The new RE asset (offiec) company will be converted into a listed Socimi, according to sources familiar with the operation. These types of companies have the advantage of being exempt from corporation tax, in exchange for having the obligation to distribute dividends every year. Like all Socimis, La Finca Global Assets will have a period of two years to debut on the stock market.

From the beginning, the Socimi will benefit from having Värde Partners as one of its shareholders – the US fund is currently finalising the acquisition of a 40% stake in the real estate company. The fund, created in Minnesota (USA) in 1993 has been very active in the Spanish market in recent years. (…). The consideration to be paid by Värde in this operation has not been revealed, but the deal is expected to close within the next few days.

The company, founded by the late Luis García Cerceda, is now being led by the second generation – Susana García Cereceda is the Chairman, and it controls the property developer through the holding company Michigan 42. The real estate company recorded revenues of €83.8 million in 2014, the most recent figures available in the registry, and losses of €19 million, along with long-term debt of €511 million.

The new Socimi’s main asset is the La Finca business park in Pozuelo, constructed alongside the luxury residential urbanisation where several footballers live, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Fernando Torres. The complex comprises 20 buildings, including 16 offices.

Tenants include companies such as Microsoft, Orange and Accenture. The Hotel AC La Finca is also located there. It is one of the most sought-after business parks in Madrid, given that it has just 0.3% of free space, according to market sources (…).

The future Socimi Finca Global Assets will manage a surface area of offices covering 227,000 sqm. As well as the complex in Pozuelo, the company also owns other office buildings, which will be included in the operation. These include the Marcelo Spínola business centre, constructed in 1991, comprising seven buildings.

In the Méndez Álvaro area, the company owns the Torre Suecia, which is currently leased to the technology firm Ericsson. Close to the A-2, it manages the Martínez Villergas business centre, which houses, for example, Warner’s headquarters in Spain. Moreover, it owns other office buildings on the sought-after streets of Serrano and Almagro.

Original story: Cinco Días (by Alfonso Simón Ruiz)

Translation: Carmel Drake