Portugal 
Italy 
Greece 
10 September 2015 – Expansión
The US fund Ares Management and the Dutch real estate Redevco have decided to join forces for investing in the Iberian Peninsula. The two companies have created a joint venture with 500 million euros of capital to buy assets in Spain and Portugal, mainly shopping centers and malls, the type of properties currently most in demand among international investors.
In fact, the new company, called Redevco Iberian Ventures, will start with the six centers and malls shared by the real estate company and the US fund. It is expected that the other 390 million will be invested in the coming months.
At present, Redevco owns 21 commercial assets in Spain, scattered over Oviedo, San Sebastian, Malaga, Bilbao, A Coruña, Madrid, Valencia and the Canaries. Furthermore, it has three establishments in Lisbon, Oporto and Braga, Portugal. Redevco will take up the property management of the joint venture.
“We wanted to form partnerships with investors who have an attitude very similar to ours, who share our values and investment goals, and Ares Management is an ideal partner in this sense,” said Andrew Vaughan yesterday, CEO of Redevco.
Management
Redevco’s new partner has an international portfolio valued at 88 billion, including real estate assets and debt. Last year, it played a leading part in a large divestment operation in Spain selling, along with Deutsche Bank and Banca March, the TREE Inversiones company, owner of 880 branch offices and five BBVA office buildings, to the Socimi Merlin Properties.
“We think that the size of an investment platform like Ares and the experience of Redevco in commercial property investment will make the new company well positioned when it comes to access to the opportunities that generate added value in these recovering markets,” said Bill Benjamin, real estate manager of Ares Group in Europe. In the first six months of 2015, the real estate investment in Spain has soared by 51% reaching 5,264 billion, with operations among which are the sales of several commercial centers, such as 50% of Puerto Venecia, by the Canadian pension fund; or Plenilunio in Madrid, bought by Klépierre for 375 million.
Original story: Expansión
Translation: Lee La