Crowdberry, an investment platform enabling private investors to co-own Czech and Slovak companies and real estate, has launched a new real estate fund for qualified investors, CB Property Investors Podfund (CBPI). The fund aims to invest €30m over the next three years and create a portfolio with a total value in excess of €75m. CBPI will focus on investing in real estate with opportunities to enhance value, across various categories, while delivering superior returns of 10+% p.a. by optimizing the utilization and economic performance of the properties. The Fund is therefore primarily designed for investors interested in participating in the appreciation of domestic real estate.
The Fund’s activities are managed by a team of recognized real estate professionals with a combined experience of over 50 years. CBPI will be led by Omar Sattar, an experienced private equity and real estate expert. As CEE Director of Avestus Capital Partners, a leading European real estate investment and asset management firm, he was previously involved in investment transactions in excess of €2 billion. He is also currently an independent board member of CPI PG, the largest real estate company in the CEE region. His experience in the segment also includes several senior positions in established international firms, including as a director of the Czech offices of Colliers International and DTZ. The fund’s management will also be supported by Peter Bečár, a Crowdberry partner who previously held the position of Managing Director of P3 Logistics Parks for CEE.
“The establishment of CBPI is another significant milestone in Crowdberry’s dynamic development. We have more than five years of experience with growth capital, across diverse business sectors. We have made investments in innovative e-commerce companies such as Footshop and GymBeam, last mile logistics companies, as well as startups such as Ecocapsule, Boataround and the proptech platform AKULAR ,” says Peter Bečár, Crowdberry partner.
“In the last two years we have had the opportunity to fundraise for investments in the areas of accommodation for the elderly or residential and industrial development, which has confirmed the interest of our investors in real estate projects. Focusing on future appreciation and actively working with the added value of real estate is key to CBPI’s strategy. Within the fund, we want to create a balanced portfolio focused on different segments, which will also reduce the riskiness of investments ,” he adds.
CBPI will focus primarily on logistics properties, retail parks and residential projects, but will also look for other interesting opportunities with expected investment returns above the market standard. It is an open-ended fund that aims to raise EUR 15 million from investors over the next 12 to 18 months. Investors can start putting in their capital from March this year, with a minimum investment of CZK 1 million (or the euro equivalent).
“Even after 25 years of rapid development of the real estate market in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, there are still many exceptional opportunities for development, redevelopment and modernization of existing projects, as well as for establishing partnerships with property owners to help them increase the value of their assets, or to refinance projects. CB Property Investors Sub-Fund aims to unlock the future potential of real estate and create benefits for users ,” says Omar Sattar, managing director of Crowdberry’s real estate division, adding: “Value-enhancing real estate investments require a deep understanding of the market, the ability to seek out new opportunities and a clear vision for the projects being undertaken. Thanks to our extensive experience, we can identify the real potential of properties and optimise their business model, operations, leasing, marketing and communication activities accordingly to ensure higher risk-adjusted returns for our investors .“
The regulator of the CBPI Fund is the Czech National Bank, the depositary is ČSOB. The fund is administered by Winstor investiční společnost a.s. and the auditor is BDO Audit.