Deloitte Romania assisted M Core in acquisition of seven strip malls

Business Forum

10 February, 2025 at 12:47 PM

Deloitte Romania assisted UK-based property investment and management group M Core in the acquisition of a portfolio of seven strip malls in Romania from the Central and Eastern European property investor and operator MAS PLC. The transaction, valued at €49 million, was signed at the end of 2024 and was finalized in January 2025, after obtaining the necessary approvals from the Competition Council and the Committee for Foreign Direct Investments in Romania.

Following this transaction, M Core expands its portfolio with a gross leasable area of 32,000 sq.m. The seven acquired malls are located in Fagaras, Focsani, Gheorgheni, Ramnicu Sarat, Sebes, Slobozia and Targu Secuiesc. M Core includes as partners LCP, Sheet Anchor, Proudreed and Evolve Estates, as well as Square 7, the latter representing the Romanian joint venture formed alongside Square 7 Properties.

Deloitte Romania provided assistance to M Core Group in the financial due diligence stage of the transaction, through a team of financial consultants consisting of Radu Dumitrescu, Partner-in-charge, Vlad Balan, Director, Sorin Rugina and Laura Necsuliu, Managers, Sorin Vinatoru, Senior Associate, Daniel Mircia and Elena Becheanu, Associates.

“We are proud to assist a prominent investor such as M Core Group in their ambitious growth agenda of expanding their European presence, through an additional acquisition on the Romanian market. This transaction further proves that retail remains an attractive asset class, with several other transactions being expected in the market in the course of the year,” said Radu Dumitrescu, Advisory Partner-in-Charge, Deloitte Romania.

Set up in 1987, M Core Group now operates in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Poland, Romania and Spain. It owns a combined portfolio of over 1,300 retail, industrial, office and residential properties, worth GBP 6 billion. In December 2023, M Core Group finalized its first investment on the Romanian market, nearing €219 million and consisting of 25 assets.

MAS PLC is a leading property investor and operator focused on retail properties in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). It was established in 2008 and owns assets in Romania, Bulgaria and Poland.

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