Verdion Raises €158 Million for European Urban Logistics Fund
SEPTEMBER 2020
Verdion European Logistics Fund 1 SCSp (the “Fund”) recently held its final close with total equity commitments of €158 million, including a final €20 million of investment secured in August 2020. Utilising targeted gearing of 50%, the Fund is seeking to acquire urban logistics assets in edge-of-town or in-fill locations that facilitate swift product delivery to major cities/towns, meeting the “last-mile” requirements of today’s economy.
Verdion Properties LLP (“Verdion”) formed the Fund to execute a new investment strategy, targeting value-add/core-plus investments in Germany, the Nordics, Benelux and other select markets across Europe, seeking to generate a 12-13% net IRR for its investors, as well as a 5% portfolio-level distributable yield. Verdion is a preeminent specialist logistics operator that, since its inception in 2010, has created a €1 billion pan-European investment portfolio (including projects under process), inclusive of several large consumer fulfilment centres for Amazon. The company’s experience includes the development of €800 million of high-specification logistics properties across Europe for global institutional investors such as the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan (HOOPP), Patrizia and Aviva Investors.
“As demand for online shopping accelerates, we see continued opportunity to acquire urban logistics assets in key corridor locations throughout Northern and Central Europe at an attractive entry basis not discernible to less technically knowledgeable buyers,” said Michael Hughes, CEO of Verdion. “By focusing our sector specific knowledge to the execution of this investment strategy, we firmly believe that stronger performance is still to come.”
The Fund attracted capital from several new top-tier, institutional investor relationships. Investors in the Fund include foundations, public and corporate pension funds and other institutional investors from Europe and the United States.
To date, the Fund has made four investments across Germany, the Netherlands and Czechia.
Accord Europe Limited served as the exclusive capital advisor in connection with this offering.
ABOUT VERDION
Verdion is a real estate investor, developer and asset manager, specialising in the industrial and logistics sector and operating across Europe. It develops high specification facilities for major e-commerce, manufacturing and third-party logistics clients; it acquires strategic development land, and it buys income producing assets with potential for added value through technical innovation and development expertise. For further information on the Verdion platform, visit: www.verdion.com.
ABOUT ACCORD EUROPE LIMITED
Accord Group Holdings LLC (“Accord”), through its affiliates, is a global capital advisor and principal investor. With its headquarters in San Francisco and personnel in Chicago, London and Seoul, Accord engages with a wide variety of participants in the real estate private equity industry. Accord Europe Limited, its broker/dealer affiliate, provides advisory and capital raising services in the United Kingdom & Europe. For further information on Accord, visit: www.accord-group.net.
For Verdion enquiries, please contact:
Laura Torrance, Holistic
+44 7595 276 254
laura@holisticgroup.co.uk
For Accord company enquiries, please contact:
Paul Jackson, Accord
+44 207 952 2023
pjackson@accord-group.net
