in UK real estate has fallen by more than 50% in the first half of the year as volumes across Europe dropped to their lowest levels since 2013, according to a study by Dealogic.
Volumes in the UK fell to €6.3bn across 20 deals – down by 51% from the same period last year.
Despite the fall, the UK was still the biggest contributor to syndicated finance, with a 30% EMEA market share.
The EMEA market as a whole was down 19% year-on-year, with 84 deals signed, totalling €20.7bn.
From July 2015: Dealogic review shows record levels of syndicated lending >>
Peter Cosmetatos, chief executive of CREFC Europe, said the UK stood out in how big its drop was, with June’s referendum “no doubt playing a part in falling levels of activity”.
Although Germany’s volumes fell nearly 90%, from €6.7bn to €783m, this was mostly because of a single outlying deal last year, which increased the total considerably.
With syndicated finance playing a growing role and becoming “the only show in town” in the loan distribution market, Cosmetatos said the report was indicative of the state of real estate lending on a broader level.
The fall was unsurprising, he said, because 2015 was a particularly strong year for the industry and was followed by a period of political and economic uncertainty.
“What will be interesting is what happens in October, November and December,” he said.
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