According to Knight Frank’s The Wealth Report 2021 released today, private capital has been undeterred by the COVID-19 pandemic and has continued to invest in commercial real estate around the world. The volume of private capital invested globally was circa $232 billion - 9% above the ten-year average, albeit down on 2019 levels.

Internationally expanding Hungarian company Indotek Group is looking at new investment opportunities on the Romanian market. Florin Tirla, Country Head Romania & Bulgaria at Indotek Group talked to Property Forum about the company’s plans and shared his expectations for the future of the office and retail markets.

Commercial property investment volume in the Czech Republic amounted to €797 million in H2 2020 with 60% of the H2 transaction volume (i.e. €478 million) being for properties located in Prague, according to Savills research.

CA Immo has successfully closed the sale of the Bratislava Business Center 1 and 1 Plus office buildings in Bratislava to Wood & Company, a leading investment bank in Central and Eastern Europe. The office complex covers rentable area of around 25,500 sqm.

The Q4 2020 results of the RICS Global Commercial Property Monitor continue to point to a challenging backdrop across Europe. Both the office and retail sectors remain under significant pressure, with demand still falling sharply amid the difficult economic climate induced by the pandemic. On a brighter note, supported by structural tailwinds, the industrial sector continues to defy this downbeat overall assessment, prompting respondents to upgrade expectations for rental and capital value growth.

Marera Real Estate Partners, a sister company of Marera Properties, has acquired the historical landmark of the publishing house BIGZ built in 1941. This monumental property spreads across over 40,000 sqm. With an investment of over €40 million, it will be turned into a modern business centre over an 18 month period of time. For project implementation, Marera Real Estate Partners is joining forces with Aleksandar gradnja, a company with proven expertise in residential development.

Cornerstone Partners, a corporate and real estate private equity investment manager, together with Crestyl Group, a Czech leader in developing multi-purpose real estate projects, have entered into a contract to buy Polish residential developer Budimex Nieruchomości. Other partners participating in the deal include blue-chip financial investors. The conclusion of the transaction is subject to approval from Poland's Anti-Monopoly Office.

ESG considerations play an increasingly important role in investment, financing and location decisions across the real estate industry. Four Colliers experts talked to Property Forum to discuss the role of sustainability in the post-COVID-19 world.

CBRE Romania announced it recruited Mihai Patrulescu from Colliers International to lead the Investment Properties department.

Anna Duchnowska, Head of Asset Management Europe at Invesco Real Estate talked to Property Forum about investing in property in the times of pandemic, the new segmentation of the real estate market and likely changes in financing conditions.