Press Release

Catalyst Capital, the European real estate investment and asset management firm, has acquired three high-quality office buildings in established business districts of Paris Ile de France for a total of €155 million.

Catalyst’s new European real estate fund, Catalyst European Property Fund II (CEPF II), has purchased Perspective Seine in the Pleyel district of Saint-Denis from a fund managed by AEW Europe and two properties west of Paris, Atria at Rueil-Malmaison and Axe Etoile at Nanterre-Préfecture, from Amundi Real Estate.

Perspective Seine at 84 Rue Charles Michels in Saint-Denis comprises three interconnected buildings, totalling 32,770 sq m (352,770 sq ft), with 549 car parking spaces. The property is 60% let to 10 tenants.

Atria comprises three buildings, totalling 18,310 sq m (197,090 sq ft), with 326 car parking spaces at 1, 15 and 21 Avenue Edouard Belin, in the Péri-Defense area of Reuil-Malmaison. The buildings were refurbished in 2013 and are 65% leased overall to 16 tenants.

Axe Etoile is a 10,630 sq m (114,430 sq ft) building with 201 car parking spaces at 103-105 Rue des Trois Fontanot in Nanterre-Préfecture, just west of La Défense. It is 100% leased to nine tenants.

DTZ acted for the vendor of Perspective Seine and JLL acted for the vendors of the Axe Défense portfolio, both in a co-exclusive mandate with CBRE.

Fabrice Clermont-Tonnerre, a partner of Catalyst Capital, said: “We are excited about the asset management initiatives and opportunities at all three properties. We believe the high-quality space, attractive locations and immediate dynamic environments will prove popular with occupiers”.

Catalyst announced in June the first close of CEPF II, a real estate fund targeting €1.25 billion of investments, having raised equity commitments of €150 million from global institutional investors.

Catalyst has already deployed for CEPF II €115 million of equity – half of which was equity from the fund and half equity from co-investing parties - in four separate transactions in the UK and Europe. In addition to Perspective Seine and the Axe Défense portfolio, CEPF II has purchased the Regatta and Eva portfolios in the UK, which total 37 properties, for a combined price of £93 million.

CEPF II invests in the office and retail sectors and, geographically, in the countries in Europe where Catalyst has an established presence, which are the UK, France, Belgium, Germany and Poland, where Catalyst believes there is the potential to source attractive value-creation opportunities and capitalise on the market dislocation between prime and secondary assets. It is targeting a diversified portfolio of income-producing assets and development and refurbishment opportunities.