Ivanhoé Cambridge and Árima Real Estate, a Spanish listed real estate investment trust (SOCIMI), have announced the completion of a significant equity investment by Ivanhoé Cambridge becoming the reference shareholder of Árima Real Estate.
The equity investment has been completed following a capital increase which has been approved by the extraordinary general shareholders’ meeting of Árima, held on November 5, 2019.
The capital increase of an amount of 150 million euros, has been mainly subscribed by Ivanhoé Cambridge as reference shareholder, for an amount of EUR 60 million representing 20.3 % in Árima’s share capital.
Ivanhoé Cambridge, through a British affiliate, becomes the main shareholder in Árima, and will appoint Stanislas Henry, Head of Strategic Partnerships, Europe at Ivanhoé Cambridge, as member of the board of directors of Árima as well as the Audit and Control Committee and Remuneration and Appointments Committee. Ivanhoé Cambridge will also participate in the Investment Committee of the company.
This significant contribution will enable Árima to continue executing its investment strategy, which consists mainly in acquiring assets with added value potential, engaging in an active portfolio management approach, and investing in the assets’ repositioning to maximize their quality, occupation and value and to turn them into benchmarks in their market.
Commenting on this investment, Karim Habra, Head of Europe and Asia-Pacific for Ivanhoé Cambridge, said: “We are very pleased to invest in Árima to support its future growth. The management team has a strong track record of performance, and has built, in a very short time, an impressive portfolio of high-quality value-add properties and a promising development pipeline. Madrid office market is anticipating a sustained rental growth and we believe Árima is the right investment vehicle to take advantage of that cycle.”
Luis Alfonso López de Herrera-Oria, CEO of Árima Real Estate SOCIMI said: “We are delighted in having Ivanhoé Cambridge on board. The commitment of all shareholders, and especially Ivanhoé Cambridge, demonstrates the confidence in the work carried out by Arima’s management, their trust and commitment in our current investments and strategy. We will move forward on our business plan in order to generate value for all of them.”
CBRE Capital Advisors (financial advisors), Savills Aguirre Newman (real estate valuation) and Clifford Chance (legal) advised Ivanhoé Cambridge as part of this transaction.
Citi, Credit Suisse, JBCM, Kempen (financial advisors), Uria, Davis Polk and EY (legal) advised Árima in this transaction.