We advised Cityforward, a Belgian fund managed by Whitewood and held by SFPIM, Whitewood and Ethias on the structuring, (debt) financing, signing and completion of the Project Schuman.
Project Schuman is a complex multiparty transaction which resulted in a single-day closing whereby the European Commission sold full ownership of the 23 properties to SFPIM at a total value of €900,000,000, while retaining usufruct for 17 of the 23 buildings and SFPIM granted long-term lease rights on 21 of the 23 buildings to 21 SPVs incorporated and fully held by our client, Cityforward.
A significant portion of this portfolio acquisition was financed by a bank financing granted by Belfius, ING, KBC, BNP Paribas Fortis, BIL and Helaba (Landesbank Hessen-ThĂĽringen).
In parallel with this acquisition, Cityforward sold one of the above-mentioned SPVs to Alides, and rights on the two other buildings were acquired by Vicinity and Matexi. Linklaters acted on both transactions.
Cityforward is set to embark on a significant redevelopment of the properties, converting them into mixed-use spaces combining office and residential units, and contributing to the transformation of Brussels’ urban landscape: this transaction represents a momentous milestone in the city of Brussels’ development and the European real estate market. Through this project, the government’s endorsement underscores its commitment to fostering affordable housing initiatives in Brussels.
Aside from an important due diligence and structuring exercise, the complexity of the transaction was characterised by the necessity for simultaneous payments to close the transaction. The successful coordination of this multifaceted process underlines Linklaters’ expertise in handling complex, high-value deals.
The transaction was led by Yves Moreau, France Englebert, Laura Vervier, Pierre Pettiaux and Ségolène Michel.
