URW sells 15% stake in flagship Paris mall

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield has sold a 15% stake in its 835,279 sq ft Westfield Forum des Halles shopping centre in Paris. The stake has been bought by French institutional investor CDC Investissement Immobilier, on behalf of Caisse des Dépôts, for €235m (£195m). The mall will now be owned by a joint venture between URW, with a 50% holding, AXA IM Alts acting on behalf of clients with 35%, and CDC with 15%. URW will continue to manage the shopping centre. The sale takes URW’s total disposals for 2024 to €1.5bn, which the shopping centre owner said would reduce its proportionate net debt by the same amount. URW added that it remained in “active discussions” on further disposals as part of its deleveraging plan, including through joint ventures with long-term institutional partners that allow URW to retain control of its flagship assets while generating asset and property management fees.