A 16th-century building in Munich, a luxury Berlin office development and the headquarters of department store Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof are among assets held by Signa property companies forced into insolvency in the last week, Bloomberg News reported. Torsten Martini, an insolvency administrator at law firm Görg, is in talks with creditor banks of a Berlin site at Schönhauser Allee 9 to see if construction may be able to resume, according to a spokesperson.
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At its height, the empire of luxury retail and real estate tycoon Rene Benko appeared to have no limits. It extended from Europe to the US, boasting a trophy case that included stakes in some of the world’s most recognizable properties, including the Chrysler Building in New York and the UK department store Selfridges, Bloomberg News reported.
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Another real estate company belonging to Austrian investor René Benko's ailing Signa Group has filed for insolvency. According to the Vienna Commercial Court, a corresponding application was submitted today by Signa Development Selection AG, IndoNewYork.com reported. The company, which specializes in project developments, is therefore aiming for self-administration restructuring proceedings, as announced by Signa on Thursday. The company should be continued and creditors should be offered a quota of 30 percent payable within two years, it said.
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European property company Signa on Thursday said that two key divisions are filing for insolvency, a significant development in the unraveling of founder Rene Benko's real estate empire, Reuters reported. Signa Prime Selection filed for self-administrated restructuring in a Vienna court on Thursday, and Signa Development Selection will file on Friday, Signa said. The announcements are the latest twist in the saga for Signa, the biggest casualty so far in Europe's real estate crisis.
Insolvent European property company Signa is holding talks to potentially sell its stake in New York's Chrysler Building and is shedding its private jet, its administrator said on Tuesday, a significant development in the salvaging of founder Rene Benko's real estate empire, Reuters reported. The efforts, announced to Signa's creditors in Vienna, mark a first update by the court-appointed insolvency administrator on plans for Signa, the biggest casualty so far of Europe's property crisis.
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The largest unit in the troubled real estate group founded by Rene Benko is urgently seeking €600 million ($647 million) of financing from funds as it prepares to file for insolvency, Bloomberg News reported. Under the terms of a deal proposed by Signa Prime, investors would provide €300 million of so-called debtor-in-possession financing by Tuesday, with the remainder made available at a later stage of the process, according to people familiar with the matter. The cash would finance the company’s restructuring under an insolvency process known as self-administration in Austria.
An insolvency filing by Signa Holding shines some light on the complex dealings of the umbrella organization of Rene Benko’s property and retail empire. The court application, seen by Bloomberg, includes a preliminary list of creditors, offering a glimpse of an operation that lured high-profile investors as it lapped up trophy assets like New York’s Chrysler Building, Selfridges department store in London and Berlin’s KaDeWe.
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Austrian tycoon Rene Benko’s Signa filed for insolvency after a last-ditch attempt to raise emergency funding failed, making the co-owner of New York’s Chrysler building one of the most prominent casualties of Europe’s property crisis, Bloomberg News reported. The filing is a bitter blow for the self-made mogul, who was known to boast that only the British royal family and the Catholic church could rival his array of exclusive properties.
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Austrian property group Signa could see more of its units file for insolvency as soon as this week as the real estate empire is running out of cash, people with direct knowledge of the matter said on Monday, Reuters reported. The group, controlled by an Austrian magnate but whose business is anchored in Germany, held talks with Elliott Investment Management to try to raise funds, according to one of the people, describing the company's scramble for cash.
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Banks in Austria had 2.2 billion euros ($2.35 billion) in exposure in mid-2023 to indebted property and retail giant Signa Group, owner of New York's Chrysler Building and Britain's Selfridges store, Reuters reported. Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) (RBIV.VI) and UniCredit's (CRDI.MI) Bank Austria accounted for two-thirds of this, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The exposures, which have not been previously reported, shed some light on the financial links of Signa, which has been a major player in Europe's property industry for more than two decades.
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