Austrian property magnate Cevdet Caner has been named as chief executive of Aggregate Holdings.
The surprise move will also see him take a 20% stake in the company, which is linked to allegations facing Adler, one of Germany’s biggest real estate groups.
Luxembourg-based Aggregate was once the largest shareholder in Adler, a real estate group that owns 27,500 flats in northern and western Germany.
Adler has been under scrutiny since short-selling group Viceroy Research last year published a report accusing the group of widespread fraud and inappropriate related-party transactions connected to Aggregate and Caner. Caner, Adler and Aggregate have denied all the allegations.
Caner said he was “excited to lead the planning and implementation of the next stage of Aggregate’s strategy”.
Until the deal with Caner, Aggregate was entirely owned by its founder Günther Walcher. Aggregate, which remains a significant shareholder in Adler, did not provide any details of the transaction with Caner.
Caner presided over Germany’s second-largest property group bankruptcy when his Level One group failed in 2008.
