www.recapitalnews.com for europe’s real estate finance markets awards & annual review 2017 | march 2018 OUT IN FRONT The best performers of 2017 2017 AWARDS The winners revealed THE YEAR IN REVIEW The crucial stories revisited Doremus Deutsche Bank CRE Conference 270 x 205mm 601DOR0106 Proof 02 05-02-2018 Deutsche Bank db.com Building strong and sustainable solutions for our clients. Deutsche Bank Commercial Real Estate Finance supports property owners on a broad range of strategies across Europe. We are proud to be recognised in the 2017 Real Estate Capital Awards. This advertisement has been approved and/or communicated by Deutsche Bank AG or by its subsidiaries and/ or affiliates (“DB”) and appears as a matter of record only. Without limitation, this advertisement does not constitute an offer or a recommendation to enter into any transaction. 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Investments are subject to investment risk, including market fluctuations, regulatory change, counterparty risk, possible delays in repayment and loss of income and principal invested.Copyright© 2018 Deutsche Bank EDITOR’S LETTER The year debt became trendy DANIEL CUNNINGHAM Editor EDITOR Daniel Cunningham Tel: +44 207 167 2033, [email protected] Reporter Alicia Villegas If there is one clear message to take from ray of sources. With more debt capital to deploy, Tel: +44 207 566 5470, [email protected] 2017, it is that European real estate debt is it is essential that conservative lenders remem- Production Editor well and truly on investors’ radars. ber their risk parameters and those seeking Patrick O'Donnell Tel: +44 207 566 5465, [email protected] During the year, private real estate debt ve- higher returns in less liquid parts of the market hicles with a Europe focus raised in the region back only those sponsors most likely to add val- Design and Production Manager Denise Berjak of $10 billion of capital, more than double the ue to their investments. Tel: +44 207 167 2036, [email protected] amount corralled in the previous year, our data For investors in an increasingly competitive show. space, entrusting capital to experienced man- Marketing Solutions Manager The reason is that many parts of the market agers of debt is paramount. Julius Pike Tel +44 207 566 4286, [email protected] started to look fully priced during 2017. Prop- Subscriptions Manager erty debt can generate attractive returns – not WINNERS Avinash Mair dissimilar to equity – but with the defensive It is the time of year you’ve all been waiting Tel: +44 207 566 5428, [email protected] quality that loans are cushioned from losses, for, when Real Estate Capital recognises the Senior Editor, Real Estate should asset values take a dip. In other words, organisations, and the deals, which stood Jonathan Brasse Tel: +44 207 566 4278, [email protected] investors still believe in the European property apart in the preceding year. From p. 3 you story, but are looking for access to the market’s will find the results of our 2017 awards, voted Director, Digital Product Development Amanda Janis returns with an added layer of comfort in this for by our readers. Tel: +44 207566 4270, [email protected] late stage of the cycle. Without giving too much away, here are a Editorial Director Throughout 2017, investors and lenders felt few observations: Senior banks with large bal- Philip Borel Tel: +44 207566 5434, [email protected] the need to deploy. On a relative-value basis, ance-sheet capability which have steadily pro- Publishing Director real estate was a more attractive prospect than vided liquidity throughout the cycle have done Paul McLean Tel: +44 20 7566 5456, [email protected] alternatives – including fixed income. The un- well; the activities of the investment banks, derlying property markets generally continued during a year in which private equity sponsors Chief Executive Tim McLoughlin to perform, with occupier demand high and required finance for complicated, time-pres- Tel: +44 20 7566 4276, [email protected] vacancy rates dwindling. Economic growth sured transactions, have also been recognised; Customer services across most European nations and a perceived and the contribution of alternative lenders has Fran Hobson (London) +44 20 7566 5444 An Nguyen (New York) +1 212 645 1919 reduction in political risk with France’s election been rewarded, perhaps most notably in our Natallis Yeung (Hong Kong) +852 21533844 of Emmanuel Macron also helped make the development financing deal category. case for European property. The European real estate lending markets However, lenders remarked throughout the were not without their challenges during 2017, year that sourcing the right deal has become but our awards demonstrate that there are more of a challenge. There is a greater volume plenty of organisations out there keeping debt © PEI MEDIA LTD of equity at play in the sector, limiting the need capital flowing. No statement in this magazine is to be construed as a recommendation to buy or sell securities. Neither this publication nor any part of it may be reproduced or for debt, and investors from outside the region, transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any including from Asia, have relied on banking re- Enjoy discovering who our winners are. information storage or retrieval system, without the prior permission of the publisher. Whilst every effort has been lationships from their home countries in cases. made to ensure its accuracy, the publisher and contributors accept no responsibility for the accuracy of the content in this magazine. Readers should also be aware that external Despite concerns about low yields and the contributors may represent firms that may have an interest in companies and/or their securities mentioned in their prospect of rising interest rates, the appetite for contributions herein. real estate investment displayed in 2017 is likely For subscription information visit to continue throughout 2018. Debt will be www.recapitalnews.com plentiful and will come from an increasing ar- MARCH 2018 WWW.RECAPITALNEWS.COM 1 Contents 2017 AWARDS AND ANNUAL REVIEW 3 THE YEAR IN REVIEW 18 Lessons learned Property debt funds continued 18 capitalising on the strong appeal of debt as an asset class in 2017 20 Q1: Gaining confidence The UK property debt market proved resilient as global 2017 AWARDS WINNERS investors saw in London a haven 3 A full run-down of the firms and despite Brexit deals which won accolades in 20 22 the Real Estate Capital Awards Q2: Capital flows 2017 Property lenders benefited from the wave of Asian investment into 17 2017 awards winners at a glance the UK and the continent 24 Q3: Financing mega-deals Lenders showed desire to finance large portfolio acquisitions by 3 private equity firms 26 Q4: Debt appeal The first CMBS deal in 2017 and new debt fundraising showed 28 investor demand for debt IN FOCUS IN REVIEW 28 A selection of the market players Real Estate Capital interviewed In Focus LASALLE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT over 2017 IN FOCUS: LASALLE INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT ‘The mezzanine opportunity was not a window’ Fresh from raising a third wave of capital for its lending strategy, LaSalle Investment Management debt boss Amy Aznar tells Daniel Cunningham that the market still needs those willing to provide higher leverage he market for European mez zanine real estate finance has changed considerably in the - write the whole loan ourselves, taking the ment Managementseven yearsfirst sinceraised LaSalle capital Investto pro T underwriting risk, and then sell down the vide it, reflects Amy Aznar, the firm’s head senior portion later. The market has become of debt investments and special situations. - more sophisticated and borrowers’ demands - In 2010, LaSalle became one of the first around certainty of execution have changed.” non-bank debt fund managers to offer strips of debt finance