DIC Asset AG Launches New Open-Ended Institutional Fund with Target Volume of EUR 1.6 Billion – Equity Capital of EUR 800 Million Fully Subscribed

Press Release

DIC Asset AG Launches New Open-Ended Institutional Fund with Target Volume of EUR 1.6 Billion – Equity Capital of EUR 800 Million Fully Subscribed

• Open-ended institutional fund with a target volume of EUR 1.6 billion launched
• Equity commitments of more than EUR 800 million already subscribed
• Seed portfolio of four properties worth c. EUR 780 million Assets under Management
• Seed portfolio includes attractive high-end assets, including the new-build “Deka Office Hub” in Frankfurt and the successfully modernised “Wilhelminenhaus” in Darmstadt
• Acquisitions worth c. EUR 1.2 billion already exceed group’s 2020 target – additional transactions expected until year-end

Frankfurt am Main, 4 December 2020. DIC Asset AG (ISIN: DE000A1X3XX4), one of Germany’s leading listed property companies, is setting up a new special AIF through its subsidiary GEG for a club of domestic institutional investors that will be the biggest investment vehicle by volume in the company’s history to date. The investment focus of the new fund is on core properties occupied by blue-chip tenants with long-term lease agreements. The fund has a medium-term target volume of approximately EUR 1.6 billion. As investment manager of the fund, GEG will generate both transaction fees and earnings from the ongoing asset management and property management. Some of these will be recognised before the end of 2020.

Meanwhile, DIC Asset AG has already topped its most recently communicated full-year target of EUR 700 million to EUR 1.1 billion in acquisitions across segments, as the notarisations of real estate earmarked for the just-launched fond brought the acquisitions total up to c. EUR 1.2 billion for the financial year to date. It is planned to complete additional transactions before the end of the year.

“We are very proud to say that we were able to win the trust of many new investment partners for this fund. For the fund launch, DIC Asset AG has put together an attractive seed portfolio of four assets with a combined value of c. EUR 780 million. We will use the already fully subscribed equity capital to move ahead with additional promising investments,” commented Christian Bock, Chief Institutional Business Officer (CIBO) of DIC Asset AG.

“The ‘Wilhelminenhaus’ gave us yet another chance to showcase the performance of our active real estate management platform. Following its successfully completed modernisation and its transfer into the portfolio of the new fund, we will keep managing this attractive asset and thereby generate a steady income from property management. Our investment partner can keep relying on the know-how of an asset manager who has been thoroughly familiar with the property for a long time,” elaborated Sonja Wärntges, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of DIC Asset AG.

More Details on the Seed Portfolio

The four properties of the seed portfolio are without exception characterised by their high building quality and the central locations in the Rhine-Main region, one of Germany’s economic core areas. The occupancy rate across the properties is 100% while the weighted average lease term (WALT) is more than 18 years. Core assets of the seed portfolio are the “Deka Office Hub” in Frankfurt and the Wilhelminenhaus in Darmstadt.

The “Deka Office Hub” is a high-end new-build property by Lang & Cie. Real Estate AG and Wentz & Co. GmbH with around 47,000 sqm of lettable area, located in the dynamic Lyoner Viertel locality of Frankfurt am Main. The property is scheduled to be fully completed by 2022. Its incoming occupier, Deka Bank, is a financial institution that is planning to move around 3,500 of its Frankfurt-based employees to the new offices within the framework of a top-down location strategy. It will seek a DGNB Gold certificate for the sustainable building design of the “Deka Office Hub.”

The “Wilhelminenhaus” asset in Darmstadt will transfer from the property portfolio that DIC Asset AG owns outright (Commercial Portfolio) into the portfolio of the just-launched investment fund. Extending over around 25,700 sqm, the property underwent an extensive energy refurbishment in recent years, and is occupied by a blue-chip public sector client, the Darmstadt Regional Council of the State of Hesse, on a long-term lease.

About DIC Asset AG:

With more than 20 years of experience on the German real estate market, the company maintains a regional footprint on all major German markets through six branch offices, and has 189 assets with a combined market value of c. EUR 8.7 billion under management
(as of: 30 September 2020).

Taking an active asset management approach, DIC Asset AG employs its proprietary, integrated real estate management platform to raise capital appreciation potential company-wide and to boost its revenues.

In its Commercial Portfolio division (EUR 2.1 billion in assets under management), DIC Asset AG acts as proprietor and property asset holder, and thus generates revenues both from the management of the assets and through the value optimisation of its own real estate portfolio.

In its Institutional Business division (EUR 6.6 billion in assets under management), which operates under the name GEG German Estate Group, DIC Asset AG generates income by structuring and managing investment vehicles with attractive dividend yields for national and international institutional investors.

DIC Asset AG has been SDAX-listed since June 2006.

IR Contact DIC Asset AG:
Peer Schlinkmann
Head of Investor Relations & Corporate Communications
Neue Mainzer Strasse 20
D-60311 Frankfurt am Main
Phone +49 69 9454858-1492
ir@dic-asset.de