New MEAG core office property fund with initial acquisitions in Germany and Spain delivered by Munich Re and MAPFRE

The MEAG EuropeOfficeSelect EOS SCSp SICAV RAIF, a Luxemburg Alternative Investment Fund, has made its first acquisitions with four properties located in Germany and Spain. Seed investors Munich Re and MAPFRE, the globally active Spanish insurance company, contributed to the initial asset allocation with existing high-quality core properties from their portfolios.

These first acquisitions are underlying the successful ignition phase of the MEAG EOS . Also, they are a milestone for the well-established partnership between Munich Re and MAPFRE. Both insurance groups have been successfully working together for many years. With the new fund, they have expanded the scope of their strategic partnership into the field of asset management for the first time. The rationale behind for both companies is to enrich their interlocked business models with asset management activities, and to offer value-adding services to their clients.

The four initial acquisitions include attractive properties in central locations with a total volume of more than € 250 m:

• Hamburg (Germany), Herrengraben 1,3,5: a 100% office property in Germany’s second-largest city, with a net rentable area of ~ 8,700 m²
• Hamburg, (Germany), Kaiser-Wilhelm-Strasse 93: 100% offices with ~ 5,400 m² net rentable area
• Düsseldorf (Germany), Bahnstrasse 16: with ~ 70% office and ~ 30% retail & others, comprising a net rentable area of ~ 7,600 m²
• Madrid (Spain), Avenida General Perón 40: a 100% office building in the Spanish capital, with ~ 20,947 m² net rentable area (multi-tenant)

The MEAG EOS also further emphasizes the sustainability ambitions of Munich Re, MEAG and MAPFRE, catering to the ever-growing demand for sustainable investment solutions in the institutional segment. The fund considers environmental and social aspects as an integral part of its investment strategy. It complies with the requirements of Article 8 of the SFDR as a sustainable investment solution, putting a focus on decarbonisation through higher energy efficiency and lower carbon footprints, in line with the Paris Agreement.

Frank Becker, MEAG Managing Director responsible for institutional clients: “The successful ignition phase of the MEAG EOS is another proof point of our decade-long expertise in property investing, as part as our broad investment capacities including listed and non-listed assets across geographies and markets. Proprietary data, inhouse research, in-depth macro insights and cross-asset views are enabling us to source attractive office properties in central locations across Europe as potential sources of steady income for our clients, our track record shows. This has made us the go-to asset manager for insurance companies, pension schemes, endowments  and other institutional clients from Germany and Europe for a long time. On this backdrop, we are also planning to open the fund to other institutional investors in the future, underlining our ambitions to further expand MEAG’s business in the institutional client segment.”

Alfredo Muñoz, General Manager of MAPFRE Inmuebles: “We at MAPFRE are glad to have our investment vehicle with Munich Re up and running. Both sides have demonstrated their commitment to this new alliance by contributing top assets to it. This agreement is a new milestone in the strategy of MAPFRE to have a geographically well diversified and resilient portfolio, keeping the focus on high-quality office buildings in excellent locations, to continue to obtain good results even in uncertain times. After this transaction we will bring in new assets using the expertise of both groups, which will undoubtedly serve as a hook to attract new institutional investors in the future as well.”

Uwe Krause, Head of MEAG’s Real Estate Fund Management: “Together with our partner MAPFRE, we identified four attractive and top located office properties for our new fund. The profile of this seed portfolio ideally underlines the high quality and long-term investment approach, that we are pursuing for our new product. Over the next months, we will further grow and diversify the fund’s portfolio with acquisitions in central locations of attractive European Tier I cities.”

Going forward, the MEAG EOS will purchase further office properties across Europe to build a pan-European portfolio. The fund volume is intended to reach around €500m by the end of 2023. From 2024, the fund shall be open for investments by other institutional investors from Germany and Europe, growing AuM to €1bn by 2025.

MAPFRE is a global insurance company. It is the benchmark insurer in the Spanish market and the largest Spanish multinational insurance group in the world. The number one Non-Life insurance group in Latin America and the sixth in Europe by Non-Life premium volume. MAPFRE employs almost 32,500 professionals and in 2021, the company’s revenues totaled almost 27.3 billion euros, with net earnings of 765 million euros (+45.3%).

MEAG is the asset manager of Munich Re and ERGO. With offices in Europe, Asia and North America and offers its extensive know-how to institutional investors and private clients. MEAG currently manages assets to the value of around €309bn, €57bn of which for institutional investors and private clients.