As the property sector in Romania recovers slowly from the COVID-19 pandemic, a new investment by IFC will help ensure continued access to quality and environmentally friendly commercial office spaces. IFC’s €85 million loan to Globalworth Holdings Cyprus Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Globalworth Real Estate Investments Limited (GREIL), aims to promote and expand green projects in Romania while creating jobs and supporting the country’s climate goals.
IFC’s long-term funding will help the company—the largest office investor in Romania in terms of market value and gross lettable area—strengthen its liquidity position and achieve its environmental goals—100% of its commercial office portfolio to be green. The company has an investment property portfolio of modern and energy-efficient commercial property assets spread across Romania and Poland. About 90 percent of the company’s standing commercial portfolio is comprised of environmentally friendly offices. In the face of uncertain market conditions exacerbated by the global pandemic and the recent war in Ukraine, IFC’s investment will further allow GREIL to sustain operations, deliver investment projects, and launch new green projects in Romania.
The current loan is funded through IFC’s $2 billion Real Sector Crisis Response Facility, part of IFC’s broader $8 billion COVID-19 Fast-Track Financing Facility to support private companies and their employees hurt by the economic downturn caused by the global pandemic.
“We are delighted, through this Loan, to be extending our collaboration with IFC. It is our first green loan since we launched our inaugural green bond back in 2020 and we believe it firmly demonstrates the sustainability of the Globalworth business and the markets in which Globalworth operates,” stated Mihai Zaharia, Head of Investments Romania and Group Capital Markets Director, Globalworth.
IFC has helped GREIL develop a Green Loan Framework, which is in line with the Loan Market Association’s Green Loan Principles 2021. Under the Green Loan Framework, GREIL will use Green Loans to finance or refinance eligible projects which will mainly contribute to climate change mitigation.
“IFC strategy in Romania is focused on promoting a green, resilient and inclusive development,” said Ary Naïm, IFC’s Regional Manager for Central and Southeast Europe. “We are pleased to strengthen our partnership with Globalworth, leading developer of green buildings and signal confidence in Romania`s office sector at the exit of the COVID-19 crisis.”
This is IFC’s second financing to GREIL, following a €50 million investment in a public bond issued by the company in 2018.
About IFC
IFC—a member of the World Bank Group—is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In fiscal year 2021, IFC committed a record $31.5 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity as economies grapple with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.
Globalworth is a listed real estate company active in Central and Eastern Europe, quoted on the AIM-segment of the London Stock Exchange. It has become the pre-eminent office investor in the CEE real estate market through its market-leading positions both in Poland and Romania. Globalworth acquires, develops and directly manages high-quality office and industrial real estate assets in prime locations, generating rental income from high-quality tenants from around the globe. Managed by over 240 professionals across, Poland, Romania, Cyprus and Guernsey, a combined value of its portfolio is €3.2 billion, as at 31 December 2021. Approximately 95.9% of the portfolio is in income-producing assets, predominately in the office sector, and leased to a diversified array of over 660 national and multinational corporates. In Poland Globalworth is present in Warsaw, Wroclaw, Lodz, Krakow, Gdansk and Katowice, while in Romania its assets span Bucharest, Timisoara, Constanta, Pitesti, Arad and Oradea. For more information visit www.globalworth.com and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn.
