Investcorp acquires Coca-Cola Belgium HQ for $98 million

Bahrain: Investcorp, a leading global provider and manager of alternative investment products, announced that its European Real Estate business has entered the Belgium market through the acquisition of The Bridge (the “property”), a single let office and Research & Development (R&D) asset located in Brussels. Investcorp has acquired 100 per cent of the property from a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Coca-Cola Company for €88 million ($98 million) through a sale and 10-year leaseback transaction.
The Property serves as The Coca-Cola Company’s Belgian headquarters, housing its marketing and R&D functions. Upon completion, the property will be 100 per cent occupied by Coca-Cola and several of its existing sub-tenants. The acquisition represents Investcorp’s first sale and leaseback real estate transaction in Europe.
Located in southwest Brussels, The Bridge offers convenient access to major European cities, including Paris and London via train. Build in 2001, the property is comprised of three interconnected buildings which provide 35,300 square metres of office and R&D space. The local area is also set to benefit from the Belgian Government’s new “Canal Plan,” which is the largest urban development plan in the Brussels region, comprised of a new mixed neighbourhood of commercial and residential properties.
The purchase of The Bridge follows Investcorp’s recent acquisitions of a multi-let office complex in Munich, Germany, for €73 million and the acquisition of a Grade A office property in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, €50 million.
Tarek AlMahjoub, Managing Director at Investcorp for the Dubai and Oman markets commented, “This acquisition is consistent with our defined investment criteria by targeting a highly occupied property in a strategic market. We are excited to enter the Belgian market through this acquisition as we continue to expand our European real estate platform in the Benelux region, which we believe is poised to benefit from solid economic and underlying property fundamentals.”
Investcorp is a leading global manager of alternative investments. Led by a new vision, Investcorp has embarked on an ambitious, albeit prudent, growth strategy. The Firm continues to focus on generating value through a disciplined investment approach in six lines of business: private equity, real estate, absolute return investments, infrastructure, credit management and strategic capital.
As at December 31, 2019, the Investcorp Group had $31.1 billion in total AUM, including assets managed by third-party managers and assets subject to a non-discretionary advisory mandate where Investcorp receives fees calculated based on AUM.
Since its inception in 1982, Investcorp has made over 195 Private Equity deals in the US, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa region and Asia, across a range of sectors including retail and consumer products, technology, business services and industrials, and more than 800 commercial and residential real estate investments in the US and Europe, for in excess of $61 billion in transaction value.
Investcorp employs approximately 450 people across its offices in New York, London, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, Doha, Mumbai and Singapore.