Deals

GIC makes first Turkish corporate real estate investment

The sovereign wealth fund of Singapore has acquired a minority shareholding in Istanbul-based Rönesans Gayrimenkul Yatirim for €250m via a rights issue aimed at furthering the firm’s development and acquisitions in the country.

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GIC, the sovereign wealth fund of Singapore, has made its first corporate investment in a real estate company in Turkey, it has announced.

The state fund said it had invested €250 million in a more than 20 percent stake in Istanbul-based developer Rönesans Gayrimenkul Yatirim (RGY), the real estate arm of Turkish conglomerate Rönesans Group via a rights issue. 

The capital injection will enable GIC to have a say in the strategic direction of the firm as it has inherited participation on the firm’s board of the directors.

The transaction should complete in the fourth quarter of this year, subject to various regulatory approvals. 

RGY will use the capital to fund acquisitions and developments in the country. The firm currently has a development pipeline extending to just shy of 5 million square feet of retail, office and mixed-use real estate projects.

GIC’s investment at the corporate level follows three investments made with RGY at the asset level, the first of which happened in 2012. Via 50:50 partnerships, GIC and RGY have invested in shopping centers Optimum Istanbul, Optimum Ankara and Optimum Izmir.

Erman Ilicak, chairman of Rönesans Holding, said: “This partnership further bolsters our relationship with one of the most reputable long-term global investors in the real estate industry.”

“Following three previous joint venture transactions at the level of individual projects, we are very pleased to have GIC now on board in RGY at the platform level as well. We look forward to solidifying RGY’s presence in Turkish commercial real estate development together with GIC’s collaboration.”

Added Chris Morrish, regional head of GIC Real Estate for Europe: “We are pleased to be making our first corporate real estate investment in Turkey, by taking a minority ownership position in RGY, one of the most reputable property developers and investors in Turkey. As a long-term investor, we are confident that Turkey will continue to grow and present good investment
opportunities.”