NEPI aims to raise EUR 60 mln for further Romanian, CEE real estate projects

South – African real estate investment fund NEPI recently launched an offer aiming to raise some EUR 60 million via an equity raise. The fund, which is listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange BVB and on the the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, plans to use the funds to fuel the Company’s future development pipeline and potential acquisition opportunities within Romania and the broader Central Eastern Europe region, according to itsrecent statement. The equity raise will be offered to qualifying investors through an accelerated book build process and only public investors will be eligible to participate, subject to a minimum application of ZAR 1 million per investor – or some EUR 70,000. The offer started on Tuesday morning, and NEPI can close it anytime. Pricing and allocations will be announced as soon as practical following the closing of the book build, the fund has said. In February this year, NEPI took a EUR 20 million loan from Garanti Bank to partially refinance its investment in Shopping City Galati in South – East Romania. The financing covers five years. NEPI’s most recent acquisition in Romania was that of City Park Mall in the Romanian seaside city of Constanta for EUR 81 million. The seller was developer Neocity Group. In 2013, NEPI bought The Lakeview office building in Bucharest, for some EUR 61.7 million. In recent years, the fund has become the most active and the largest buyer of real estate properties in Romania. Its portfolio in Romania includes Promenada Mall Brăila, Ploieşti Shopping City, Retail Park Auchan Piteşti, Deva Shopping Centre, Severin Shopping Center, and the office buildings Floreasca Business Park, The Lakeview in Bucharest and City Business Centre Timişoara. editor@romania-insider.com