Brookfield overtakes Segro in the race for Tritax EuroBox

Brookfield, a Canadian capital markets giant, has surpassed Segro in the bid to acquire Tritax EuroBox. The board of the FTSE 250 warehouse operator endorsed Brookfield's latest cash offer, which values Tritax EuroBox shares at an attractive £557 million, representing a significant premium for shareholders compared to Segro’s previous bid. As recently as September, the company's recommendation favored Segro's share swap offer. This contest between Brookfield and Segro, the UK’s largest publicly listed landlord, is taking place against a backdrop of renewed momentum in commercial real estate deals. After a two-year drought period, the warehouse market, in particular, is in demand, benefiting from the immense demand by the e-commerce sector since the pandemic. While warehouse prices have declined less steeply since 2022 and have now recovered more rapidly than other property categories, the industrial sector as a whole recorded nearly a one percent value increase in the year to June, according to the Green Street Index. This development ranks among the strongest compared to various property types. Other exciting transactions are also occurring in different parts of Europe: Blackstone recently acquired a large warehouse portfolio valued at one billion euros. This is in line with the US investment giant’s strategy to increasingly focus on the logistics sector. In one of the largest real estate transactions of the year, Blackstone purchased 80 percent of the European logistics portfolio of the South African landlord Burstone. These developments signal a revival of the European commercial real estate market, which, after hitting a low point at the beginning of the year, is now showing signs of initial recovery. Investors are increasingly on the lookout for properties traded at more favorable prices. Segro, for instance, raised fresh equity of £900 million this year to seek new investments. At the same time, Brookfield is making a notable move by offering the CityPoint skyscraper in London for sale.