Didier Balcaen, CEO of Speedwell talked to Property Forum about the company’s development plans for 2021, the value of mixed-use projects and shared his long-term expectations for the Romanian property market.

According to the last few months’ most active investor on the Slovak market, investment activity is returning to normal. Martin Šmigura, investment manager of WOOD & Company’s real estate operations in Slovakia, talked to Property Forum about the company’s recent investment deals and shared his market expectations.

Affan Yildirim, General Manager and Board Member at Romania-based real estate developer Anchor Grup talked to Property Forum about business strategy and shared his expectations for the Romanian economy and the property investment market in 2021.

Nordic investor NREP has recently made headlines by entering the Polish market with the acquisition of a 130,000 sqm logistics portfolio and over 1,000 apartments. Stefan Wallander, Chief Business Officer of NREP talked to Property Forum about their entry into the local market, rising apartment prices and sustainability commitment.

Companies from the BPO sector may be reducing their offices in North America or Western Europe, but they are taking up more space in CEE at the same time. Yovav Carmi, CEO of GTC talked to Property Forum about issuing green bonds, ESG strategies and the BPO industry.

Milan Kratina, CEO of Czech-based logistics developer Accolade talked to Property Forum about investment plans, environmental awareness and the current eagerness of banks to finance new warehousing projects.

Real estate valuers must work to the highest standards as they play a critical role in supporting markets by creating consistency and transparency. David Dušek (Czech Banking Association), Barbora Rýdlová (VŠE – Prague University of Economics and Business) and Petr Polák (Ministry of Finance of the Czech Republic) talked to Property Forum about the current state of the valuation profession and the challenges expert valuers face on the Czech market.

One of Slovakia’s and the region’s largest developers continues to focus on mixed-use projects across its markets. Pavel Pelikán, Executive Director at JTRE talked to Property Forum about the company’s recent transactions, ongoing projects and the UK business.

The industrial and logistics market is booming across the region with e-commerce and logistic companies being the main drivers of growth from the tenant side. Laurent Jechoux, Business Director at Czech industrial developer Contera talked to Property Forum about current projects, market trends and the company’s entry into the office market.

GLP closed the acquisition of Goodman Group’s CEE portfolio less than a year ago. With the integration complete, the company is developing a number of large-scale projects. Błażej Ciesielczak, the CEO of GLP Central and Eastern Europe talked to Property Forum about the growth of the logistics market and shared the company’s expansion strategy for the region.