A trio of property advisers have teamed up with the final bidders for Blackstone’s €13bn (£11bn) Logicor in what could result in a bumper payday.
The final three investors in the running for a straight sale of the European logistics platform are Global Logistics Properties, which is being advised by CBRE; China Investment Corporation, which is being advised by Cushman & Wakefield; and Mapletree/Temasek which are being advised by JLL.
Final bids for the 600-asset business are due in around three weeks’ time and shortly after this Blackstone is expected to make a final decision on whether to undertake an IPO of the business or proceed with a particular party. A trade sale would result in one of Europe’s largest property deals.
At the current level of interest a trade sale is understood to be the most likely outcome. However, an IPO is still firmly in the running. At the end of last month Blackstone appointed Philip Green, the chairman of Carillion, as non-executive chairman – a crucial part of the governance structure should Blackstone opt for a listing.
CBRE’s logistics team advised GIC on its €2.4bn acquisition of P3 last year and advised AXA IM Real Assets on its €1bn purchase of Gramercy Property Europe earlier this month. Jack Cox, head of EMEA industrial and logistics capital markets and Simon Blake, chairman of EMEA industrial and logistics capital markets, are at the forefront of advising GLP.
Cushman & Wakefield’s Paul Boursican, head of international capital markets for EMEA, is leading the team advising CIC on Logicor. Boursican was recruited into DTZ in 2013 prior to its merger with Cushman having previously founded investment manager Milestone Capital, raising a €300m fund backed by Chelsfield Partners and HBOS.
Philip Marsden, head of European industrial and logistics capital markets at JLL, is at the coalface of with Mapletree and Temasek while Matthew Richards, the company’s EMEA head of capital markets, has experience in channelling capital from the Far East into European real estate.
Eastdil Secured is advising Blackstone on a trade sale. Goldman Sachs, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citi and Morgan Stanley are advising on the IPO.
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