Rockefeller Group, the US real estate company, is said to be in talks to buy a controlling stake in property fund manager Europa, which has repeatedly declared its interest in the Bulgarian market.

Rockefeller, established in 1928 by John D Rockefeller to develop the eponymous centre in Manhattan, which is now owned by Japan’s Mitsubishi Estate, is in the final stages of acquiring a 75% stake in Europa Capital in a deal that will create a USD 20 B fund management group, the Financial Times reported.

London-based Europa is a private equity real estate fund manager with more than EUR 2 B of asset under management.

It has raised six opportunistic real estate funds and invested more than EUR 6 B in 17 European countries since 1995. It is currently investing its third regional fund as well as another focused on Eastern Europe.

The real estate fund manager Europa Capital declared its interest in the Bulgarian market as early as in 2007, when it said it is looking at a commercial center in Bulgaria.

After the recession set in, the company was forced to postpone its plans, but in March this year it announced its determination to make a comeback in Eastern Europe after an absence of more than two years. It said it is in talks for the purchase of an office project in Sofia.

The company says it is planning to invest over EUR 100 M in key markets like Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey and the Western Balkans.
Source: novinite