The real estate developer WDP, whose main shareholder is one of the richest families in Belgium, is preparing the acquisition of the Expo Market Doraly shopping complex, in Afumati, from the entrepreneur Gheorghe Iaciu and former HSBC bankers, a transaction worth around 100 million euros , which has chances to become one of the most expensive sales in the history of the local market, according to Profit.ro sources.
Expo Market Doraly, the first wholesale in Romania, established by Dorina and Gheorghe Iaciu in 1993, was put up for sale in 2019, as part of the strategy included in the sales contract signed in 2008 with HSBC bankers, who own half of the commercial complex
Until recently, the Hungarian group Indotek was in exclusive negotiations for the acquisition of the property, but did not reach an agreement and withdrew from the business.
Now, the owners of Expo Market Doraly entered into a due diligence process with WDP (a thorough analysis of the business from a legal, financial, commercial, operational and technical point of view) to buy the commercial complex, according to Profit.ro sources.
If it materializes, this will be WDP’s first acquisition in the retail sector, its portfolio being focused almost exclusively on industrial-logistics properties. Profit.ro sources say that the completion of the transaction could be pushed to 2024 because the opinion of the Supreme Council of National Defense (CSAT), required for transactions of over 2 million euros made by investors from outside the European Union, could be necessary.
This is because a 4.56% share of WDP shares is owned by companies related to the American BlackRock group, one of the most powerful asset managers in the world.