Dream announced it has acquired Chancerygate Limited, a leading U.K.-based industrial developer and asset manager, expanding its asset management platform. The deal represents a further milestone in the European expansion strategy of Dream. It also enhances the company’s position in important industrial real estate markets and is consistent with its long-term investment strategy.
Dream Unlimited Corp. and Dream Industrial Real Estate Investment Trust (TSX: DIR.UN) announced the signing of definitive agreements to effect the acquisition. Chancerygate has more than 30 years of success in the multi-let industrial (MLI) sector. The company also currently manages a diversified portfolio of income-producing and development assets with an approximate value of £1.2 billion ($2.2 billion).
The deal will see Dream combine its asset management platform with Chancerygate’s investment management and development operations. Dream Industrial REIT will also acquire Chancerygate’s wholly owned real estate assets and co-investment interests at the same time. The value of the deal is about £78 million ($147 million), not including some existing debt. Dream Industrial REIT also said it plans to spend another 25 million pounds ($47 million) on its development projects under way. The companies anticipate closing the transaction in August 2026.
A joint platform to boost European industrial leadership
As a result of the acquisition, the combined asset management platform will be one of the leading vertically integrated urban industrial operators in Europe. The platform will together manage or develop around 27 million square feet of gross leasable area in nine European countries. Consequently, Dream will be able to substantially improve its position in the rapidly growing urban industrial market.
Chancerygate’s strength in the multi-let industrial sector complements Dream’s established focus on urban small and mid-bay industrial assets. The transaction also expands Dream’s footprint in Europe with operations throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland, Spain and Portugal. These markets are a natural fit with Dream’s existing footprint in Germany and the Netherlands.
Upon completion, Dream’s European operation will boast over 80 professionals based across offices in London, Manchester, Birmingham, Dusseldorf, Berlin, Amsterdam, Madrid, Lisbon and Dublin. Thus, the company will enhance its operational capabilities throughout Europe.
The acquisition also contributes to Dream’s global assets under management. Pro forma estimates indicate that global AUM will exceed $30 billion. At the same time, European industrial and living assets under management will exceed $6 billion, giving institutional investors and strategic partners more scale.
Chancerygate also has an impressive development record. Since 2007 the firm has completed 52 developments, generating an average realized levered internal rate of return (IRR) of 27%. Dream also has a strong European investment history with over $13 billion in transactions completed over the last 15 years.
In addition we are in advanced discussions with Dream, Chancerygate and Dream Industrial REIT to form a new pan-European multi-let industrial joint venture. The proposed partnership, which will be supported by a leading global institutional investor, will pursue acquisition and development opportunities throughout Europe. The joint venture aims to reach a gross asset value of approximately €500 million ($800 million).
“This acquisition is an important step as we continue building a leading European industrial platform at Dream. Chancerygate brings us an exceptional team and an immediate presence in London at the centre of European capital flows. Combined with our existing platform we are well-positioned to continue to grow our private capital partnership business,” said Jamie Cooper, Co-President, Asset Management of Dream.
“With Chancerygate, Dream Industrial REIT enters the U.K. multi-let industrial market, a sector with attractive operating fundamentals, together with a fully built operating platform and established institutional relationships. The transaction accelerates our European growth strategy and is consistent with our objective of growing accretively through thoughtful allocation of capital and vertically integrated operations,” said Alexander Sannikov, CEO of Dream Industrial REIT and Co-President, Asset Management of Dream.
“We are excited to join Dream, whose long-term investment philosophy and institutional capabilities align closely with the platform we have built at Chancerygate. Over the past three decades, our team has developed a reputation for managing and delivering high-quality assets for some of the world’s most sophisticated investors. Joining Dream gives us access to greater scale, broader resources and an enhanced ability to serve our partners as we enter this next chapter of growth,” said Richard Bains, Managing Director of Chancerygate.
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News Source: Businesswire.com
