Glitnir Property Group and Leimdorfer have announced the creation of a new Nordic real estate advisor, Glitnir Property Holding. Glitnir Property Holding is created through the combination of the Norwegian Glitnir Property Group (the parent company of Glitnir Næringsmegling AS, Glitnir Real Estate AS and UNION Eiendomskapital AS, former UNION GRUPPEN) based in Oslo and the Swedish real estate adviser Leimdörfer with offices in Stockholm and Helsinki, Finland.
This is one important step in the strategy to become the leading real estate adviser in the Nordic market. The new entity will be owned by Glitnir banki hf (Glitnir) (70%) and the former partners of UNION Gruppen, Union Eiendomskapital and Leimdörfer (30%). The combined proforma value of Glitnir Property Group's and Leimdörfer's transactions in 2006 was approx. €5 billion.
Leimdörfer is a leading Swedish real estate adviser operating in the Nordic property market. The company was founded in 1992 and has 40 employees. Leimdörfer has very successfully focused on four business areas; brokerage, corporate finance, financing advisory and strategic advisory.
Glitnir Property Group is located in Oslo and is the leading Norwegian real estate adviser and successfully focuses on brokerage, syndication and financing advisory. The company owns Glitnir Norsk Næringsmegling AS, UNION Eiendomskapital AS and Glitnir Real Estate AS. Glitnir Norsk Næringsmegling is the leading Norwegian real estate brokerage firm. UNION Eiendomskapital manages real estate funds and syndicated projects with assets of approx. EUR 1 billion, with the.largest fund under management being Storebrand Eiendomsfond.
The formation of the new entity is the result of a process where the Norwegian company Glitnir Property Holding AS, the parent company of Glitnir Property Group, has entered into an agreement to acquire 91% of the shares in the Swedish company Leimdörfer Holding AB. The purchase of Leimdörfer is done by a combination of cash settlement and an issue of new shares in Glitnir Property Holding AS. The price paid does not materially affect the financial situation of Glitnir banki hf. Peter Leimdörfer will be the Managing Director of the new company and Frank O. Reite will be the Chairman of the board.
"We have clearly stated our intention to grow in the real estate market. The merger between Glitnir Property Group and Leimdörfer is further proof of this strategy. Glitnir is already a strong, established player in the Norwegian real estate market. The merger with Leimdörfer will consolidate our position as adviser in the Swedish and Finnish real estate markets. By joining forces with Leimdörfer, we aim to expand both our services and geographical scope in the Nordic real estate markets," said Bjarni Ármannsson, CEO of Glitnir.
"The Swedish market is one of the most active in Europe and is highly interesting, but as it is dominated by a few domestic players, it has been very difficult to gain significant entrance," says Lars P. Fasting, partner in the new entity. "By joining forces with Leimdörfer, our clients will be able to take advantage of Leimdörfer's substantial research capability, strong execution ability and impressive international network."
"Joining forces with a proactive financial group like Glitnir, with a strong presence in all Nordic countries and a global network in banking and finance, will provide us with the opportunity to offer our clients even better advisory services in cross border transactions," says Peter Leimdörfer that will take on the role as Managing Director in the new entity. "Further, Glitnir´s significant financial strength will enable us to expand into new markets."
The parties have agreed not to disclose the terms of the transaction. The transaction is planned to be completed by the end of May and is subject to regulatory approvals in Sweden and Iceland.
Source: Leimdorfer
