Barings to launch Spanish REIT

Barings has announced the conversion of its Spanish subsidiary, Barings Core Spain, into a SOCIMI (Spanish REIT).

The investment vehicle was registered last week in Madrid’s companies registry and will start trading with a portfolio that includes a logistic platform in the town of Ontígola in the Province of Toledo which it acquired from GLL Real Estate Partners for €35 million last year. This purchase was in fact the first Barings made in the Spanish logistics sector.

The new Spanish REIT will also includes Berceo, their newly acquired shopping center in Logroño, a deal in which they were advised by Cushman & Wakefield. The property has a GLA of 34,000 square metres and is the dominant center for the capital of Spain’s Rioja region. Included in the portfolio is Velazquez nº64, a  ​1,638 square metre high street unit which was acquired by the group in 2017 and is leased to Banco Santander. In addition to the aforementioned assets, the listed property fund will include various assets that the group owns in Zaragoza.

In addition to the launch of its SOCIMI, the company has announced the acquisition of 5 office buildings in Madrid, sold by Meridia Capital. The last Barings purchase (which will not be part of the Barings Core Spain Socimi portfolio) adds c. 27,800 square meters to the group’s portfolio in Spain. Located in Julián Camarillo, a techie zone in Madrid, the Avalon business park is composed of nine buildings with a total GLA of ​​almost 47,000 square metres.

As of June 30, 2018, Barings is a $306+ billion global financial services firm that invests in both traditional and alternative assets in the United States, United Kingdom, and Europe. The fund was formerly known as Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers LLC and was founded in 1994.