Press Release...
DRAFT: 09.01.06 1700 GMT
LEHMAN BROTHERS REAL ESTATE PARTNERS AND NEP PARTNERS TO ACQUIRE LINCO FASTIGHETS AB
London, [11] January 2006 - A joint venture of Lehman Brothers Real Estate Partners (“LBREP”) and NEP Partners (“NEP”) today announces the purchase of Linco Fastighets AB. Linco is a private Swedish property company which owns 4 large office buildings totaling approximately 148,000 square meters in the Solna Strand and Norrtull areas of Stockholm.
The assets offer opportunities for further value enhancement through active asset management, strategic capital expenditure and leasing. The greater Stockholm region is a key strategic investment area for NEP Partners and for Lehman Brothers, who both have a long term focus there.
Per Tängerstad, CEO of Linco, commented on the transaction, “When taking the decision to sell Linco, it was of great importance to the owners to find a strong investor with the interest and ability to further invest in, and improve the properties. Both NEP and LBREP have shown great professionalism and understanding of the portfolio, and we believe they will be successful as new owners of Linco.”
Gerald Parkes, Managing Director of LBREP commented, “We are delighted to have concluded this investment with assets that have been well managed by the existing management and with the opportunity for us to further enhance the value together with our partners – NEP. This investment is the first investment in the newly established joint venture with NEP and it is according to our investment philosophy to work with dedicated and professional partners throughout Europe. LBREP currently has investments with 30 partners across Europe.”
Ed Williams, co-founder of NEP further commented, “We are pleased to have secured this transaction and are excited about working with our partner, LBREP, and the existing employees of Linco to realize the full potential of the assets.”
For further information about the transaction please contact:
Linco Fastighets AB
Per Tängerstad
Tel: +46 705 912 300
Lehman Brothers
Corporate Communications
Tel: +44 207 102 1471
NEP Partners
Ed Williams
Tel: +44 207 495 9025
NEP Partners is a recently formed company jointly owned by Ed Williams and Torsten Bjerregaard, two former senior executives of Lehman Brothers. NEP Partners’ primary business strategy is to invest in real estate in Northern Europe, and in particular the Scandinavian and UK markets.
Lehman Brothers Real Estate group is part of the Private Equity Division of Lehman Brothers Inc., member SIPC. Lehman Brothers has a long history in private equity investing with total assets under management of more than $10 billion. The Private Equity Division leverages the breadth and depth of Lehman Brothers' global presence and expertise across a wide range of products, industries, and geographies. Lehman Brothers creates and raises funds and invests in asset classes where the firm has strong capabilities, proprietary deal flow, and an excellent reputation, offering attractive investment opportunities to its institutional and individual investing clients. Currently, more than 200 professionals cover five core asset classes: Private Funds Investments, Merchant Banking, Venture Capital, Real Estate and Fixed Income-Related Funds.
Lehman Brothers Real Estate Private Equity currently includes Lehman Brothers Real Estate Partners I and II (LBREP) and Lehman Brothers Real Estate Mezzanine Partners (LBREM). These global real estate funds make direct private equity and mezzanine investments in properties, real estate companies and service businesses ancillary to the real estate industry. LBREP and LBREM are an extension of Lehman Brothers ' real estate business, which has a long and successful track record of advising, underwriting, lending and investing. Over $100 billion of real estate transactions have been completed over the past three years.
Lehman Brothers (ticker symbol: LEH), an innovator in global finance, serves the financial needs of corporations, governments and municipalities, institutional clients, and high-net-worth individuals worldwide. Founded in 1850, Lehman Brothers maintains leadership positions in equity and fixed income sales, trading and research, investment banking, private investment management, asset management and private equity. The Firm is headquartered in New York, with regional headquarters in London and Tokyo, and operates in a network of offices around the world. For further information about Lehman Brothers’ services, products and recruitment opportunities, visit our Web site at www.lehman.com.