Our REITs experience in Europe

  • Allco Finance Group, an Australian REIT, on the establishment of a European Property Fund involving investments in Germany (including a portfolio of buildings leased to Deutsche Telekom with an approximate value of €333m), and discussions relating to other investments in Europe, including the UK, as well as the appropriate forms of fund structure.
  • British Land on its UK REIT conversion.
  • CGW on the refinancing of the first tranche of France Telecom's technical property portfolio and its subsequent disposal to Foncière des Regions, a SIIC.
  • Immocaral on its acquisition of Colonial, a Spanish listed property company that owns 80 per cent of SFL, a French SIIC.
  • Realia, the Spanish property company, on its £590m acquisition of a majority stake in the capital of SIIC de Paris and the subsequent takeover for the balance of the share capital.
  • A consortium of the majority shareholders of Société Foncière Lyonnaise, a French SIIC, on the sale of its 53.6 per cent stake to Colonial Group, for a cash consideration of €759m.

Our REITs experience in Asia

  • Merrill Lynch, Citibank and JPMorgan, the joint lead underwriters, on the US$808m initial public offering (IPO) of Champion REIT, Hong Kong's first REIT with exposure to grade A prime commercial property located in Hong Kong's central business district. Champion REIT is a spin-off by developer Great Eagle Holdings Limited of its Citibank Plaza b­uilding. It is the fourth REIT to be listed in Hong Kong.
  • Champion REIT - acting for the underwriters (JPMorgan, Merrill Lynch and Citigroup) in the issue of HK$765m worth of convertible bonds to help fund the acquisition of three floors of Citibank Tower from Kerry Properties. This is the first such financing arranged by a Hong Kong real estate investment trust.
  • The Development Bank of Singapore (DBS) as global co-ordinator on the S$235m Singapore IPO of Fortune Real Estate Investment Trust. Sponsored by Cheung Kong (Holdings) Limited, Fortune Real Estate Investment Trust is the first Singapore listed property trust composed of non-Singapore property assets, comprising five Hong Kong retail shopping malls.
  • Fukuoka Jisho on the structure of the Japanese Real Estate Investment Trust and related legal issues.
  • HSBC as lender in relation to the Link REIT offered in Hong Kong.
  • HSBC, Citibank and DBS as the providers of a US$165m term loan facility to Guangzhou Investment REIT, raising HK$1.8bn after pricing its IPO. This was the first REIT to be sold in Hong Kong involving PRC properties and the banks' loan was secured over the underlying PRC properties and their rental cash flows.
  • JPMorgan and Merrill Lynch, the joint lead underwriters, on the first private sector REIT to be established in Hong Kong. Prosperity REIT raised approximately US$250m in its IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
  • UBS Warburg on the proposed Singapore IPO of CapitaLand's REIT.

News

Freshfields advises Associated British Ports group on £2.36bn refinancing View

Freshfields advises underwriting consortium on successful €186.5m rights issue by Deutsche Wohnen AG View

Briefings

German Real Estate Investment Trust  View

REITs in the PRC  View

Awards

European law firm of the year - PERE Awards (2009)

Real estate and construction deal of the year - Asian Legal Business Awards (2008)

View all awards