Press releases

Frankfurt am Main, 19.07.2021

German Investment Group GmbH ("GIG") from Leipzig receives mezzanine capital to finance the purchase of land and the implementation of a revitalization project in Wilhelmshaven. The plan is to convert the historic Karstadt building in the city center into a senior living and care center. Capcora, a consulting firm specialized on real assets, accompanied the transaction as financial advisor.

On a total area of approx. 13,000 m² GFA, 117 nursing places as well as 18 apartments for assisted living will be created. The facade of the listed building will be preserved, gutted and converted for the new use. On the first floor of the former shopping center, space is planned for food retail, a pharmacy and the reception area of the senior center.

The financing, provided by a German debt fund with a high level of in-house real estate expertise, is being used to fund the purchase of the land and development costs. As soon as a first-ranking bridge financing via a bank is ready for disbursement, which is also being organized in parallel by Capcora, the loan of the debt fund will be converted into subordinated mezzanine capital. This approach means that GIG is able to act quickly during the land acquisition and development phase, and has also met the bank's equity requirement for the overall project during the conversion phase.

The senior center will be leased on a long-term basis to a well-known operator who wishes to secure this exceptional inner-city property directly on Wilhelmshaven's pedestrian zone. The intention is to sell the property to an institutional investor in parallel with the renovation.

"GIG is currently focusing on the purchase of existing buildings that are suitable for conversion to senior living and care. The tasks involved in the purchase and development are very complex and we are pleased to have the support of Capcora in raising capital," said Frank Böttcher, Managing Director of German Investment Group and Bauunion Leipzig.

"The Wilhelmshaven nursing center is the first project in which GIG is acting as project developer with its subsidiary, BUL Bauunion Leipzig ("BUL"). As a medium-sized construction company, BUL is contributing its expertise in the conversion of existing buildings. For the financing of this and also the other planned projects, we were looking for equity-friendly financing and are grateful to Capcora for the quick implementation", says Elvir Aljovic, Managing Director of BUL Bauunion Leipzig.

"In revitalization projects, there is initially a relatively high capital requirement due to the purchase of land and building. Structuring the financing in project phases and in different capital classes was the key to success in this transaction. We were able to take into account the individual requirements of the capital partners for a quick implementation of the transaction," said Christian von Olnhausen, Managing Partner at Capcora and responsible for the real estate business.

About German Investment Group GmbH:

The German Investment Group GmbH, Leipzig ("GIG") has been successful for many years as a medium-sized construction company with its subsidiary, BUL Bauunion Leipzig GmbH. The Group's project development activities are pooled through GIG. The current focus is on revitalization projects for senior living and care. BUL, as the construction company carrying out the work, has a great deal of experience and its own construction capacities in this property class and in the conversion and expansion of such buildings. www.bul-leipzig.de

About Capcora:

Capcora is a consulting firm, specialized on real assets. Capcora procures equity, mezzanine and debt financing for energy and infrastructure projects, real estate, and medium-sized companies. The focus is especially on mezzanine financing for the recapitalization of tied-up liquidity in operating assets as well as for bridge financing of developments and construction measures in the area of renewable energies (photovoltaics, onshore wind) and real estate through alternative financing sources. In addition, Capcora acts as transaction manager for M&A processes (buy and sell side advisory).