One of the biggest transactions of the year in the Czech real estate market is about to take place. Negotiations for the sale of the OC Letňany shopping centre are supposedly ongoing in Prague. After six years, the German owner of the shopping centre is considering selling the property, writes HN.cz, as confirmed by two sources from the Central European M&A market.

Investor NREP wants to take control of property developer 7R. The Scandinavian fund has already acquired another Polish logistics developer, BIK SA, in 2021.

During the first quarter of 2023, the volume of investment in commercial real estate exceeded €477 million, a result that far exceeded initial expectations. The reason for these positive figures is a single large transaction into the retail property portfolio, which accounts for the majority of the total quarterly investment volume. This transaction is the reason why most of the funds in the past quarter went to the retail segment. Domestic investors were the most active last quarter, accounting for an unprecedented 87% of the total, according to Knight Frank's analysis of the Czech commercial real estate market.

Echo Investment's residential business will be integrated into Archicom in order to create a nationwide developer with bigger growth potential, synergies and a wider market presence. The change will clarify the structure of the Group, where Archicom will be the residential part and Echo Investment will focus on growing the commercial and PRS segments, as well as on creating mixed-use ‘destination’ projects.

Logicor continues expanding in the Czech Republic when it acquired a 100,000 sqm brownfield close to Prague, further strengthening its presence in this crucial market and nearly doubling its footprint.

Penta Real Estate plans to diversify its real estate portfolio and is preparing for further expansion within Europe. It wants to establish a real estate fund for this purpose, as Marek Dospiva, co-owner of the group, revealed to E15.cz

Commercial property investments in Romania could hover between €700 and €900 million in 2023, slightly below the average of recent years, with new deals set to be driven by industrial and office projects, according to JLL.

Avison Young represented a global investment manager in the sale of a portfolio of four retail facilities, located in regional cities: Stara Cegielnia in Szczecin, Galeria Kosmos in Koszalin, OK Centrum Wałbrzych and OK Centrum Strzegom, with a total area of about 15,000 square meters GLA. Information on the value of the sale and the buyer's entity was not disclosed. All the facilities have a food operator of well-known discount chains - Lidl, Biedronka or Intermarche - as the main tenant. The buyer has plans to refresh some of the acquired assets and re-commercialize them.

Redefine Properties and Griffin Capital Partners have set up a venture to acquire Stokado, Poland's second-largest self-storage operator, to establish a platform to fast-track investment through development activity within this sector.

Property group NEPI Rockcastle has raised the equivalent of €143 million equity from its latest scrip dividend, corresponding to approximately 85% of the final dividend payment for 2022, while also completing a secured green financing of €200 million for a 5-year term with Erste Group Bank and Raiffeisen Bank.