“Kyiv Ploshchad” will relax on the “Riviera” – Kommersant

Trust Bank may soon get rid of the Riviera shopping center in the south of Moscow, which it acquired two years ago for debts. According to Kommersant’s information, the bank is negotiating the sale of the asset of Kievskaya Ploshchad, founded by God Nisanov and Zarakh Iliev. The current owner previously expected to earn 13 billion rubles for the object, but its current price, according to market participants, is almost half that. Experts do not rule out that a potential buyer, before purchasing a shopping center, will take it under management.

The Kievskaya Ploshchad Group of Companies is negotiating the purchase of the Riviera shopping center on Avtozavodskaya Street in the south of Moscow from the Trust bank of non-core assets, two sources told Kommersant in the real estate market. Trust declined to comment; Kievskaya Ploshchad did not respond to Kommersant’s request.

Shopping center “Riviera” with a total area of ​​298 thousand square meters. m until 2018 belonged to the structures of the co-owner of PIK Group Sergei Gordeev, later it was bought by the Kyrgyz fund KLS Eurasia Venture. In 2019, the complex was pledged to Trust. The total amount of the bank’s claims against Riviera LLC reached 42 billion rubles. In 2021, the bank bought the property on its balance sheet for RUB 9.96 billion.

“Kievskaya Square”, founded by God Nisanov and Zarakh Iliev, in Moscow owns the “European” shopping center, the “Gardener” market, the “Food City” complex, the “Ukraine” hotel and others. According to Forbes estimates, in 2022 the group’s rental income decreased by 4% year-on-year, to $1.6 billion.

Trust expects to earn at least 13 billion rubles for the sale of Riviera, the head of the bank, Alexander Sokolov, reported at the beginning of 2023. The managing partner of Vanchugov and Partners, Alexey Vanchugov, estimates the market value of the property at 7–9 billion rubles. According to a Kommersant source familiar with the situation, the expected rental flow at the end of this year will be 500 million rubles. According to him, about 15% of the space in the facility is now empty, which is higher than the market average. According to CORE.XP estimates, in September the share of vacant premises in Moscow shopping centers was 8.2%.

“Riviera” is not currently operating at its maximum capacity, recalls Marina Malakhatko, senior director of CORE.XP. “Trust”, as a non-core player, was mainly involved in the support and maintenance of the building, but did not invest in redevelopment, notes MALLPIC director Sergei Platitsyn.

There is a possibility that the parties will be able to agree on a deal, says a Kommersant source in the real estate market. The main reason is the strategic interest of both parties: for Trust it is an opportunity to get rid of a non-core asset and concentrate on its core activities, while for Kievskaya Ploshchad the acquisition of Riviera will be an addition to its portfolio of large retail assets, the source explains. Kommersant.”

Large companies with a large portfolio of quality shopping centers, like Kievskaya Ploshchad, have strong negotiating positions with tenants, and it will be easier for the group to increase the occupancy of the facility with quality retailers, says Mikael Kazaryan, head of the capital markets and investment department at IBC Real Estate. He believes that one of the possible options for the transaction is the transfer by Trust of Kievskaya Ploshchad for management with subsequent redemption.

This year, investors actively invested in retail properties. According to Nikoliers estimates, since the beginning of 2023, the volume of investments in this segment has amounted to 167 billion rubles. This is due to a large number of “forced transactions concluded as a result of the departure of foreign players from the Russian market,” consultants note. Thus, the Balchug Capital fund bought the Metropolis shopping center from the American Hines fund for an estimated 30–35 billion rubles. And at the end of September, the deal between Gazprombank and Ingka Centers for the purchase of 14 Mega shopping centers throughout Russia was closed.

Daria Andrianova