The Belgian Government has acquired 23 office buildings from the European Commission for nearly €1 billion through its sovereign wealth fund SFPIM.
The Belgian fund Cityforward — established by SFPIM and Belgian insurer Ethias and managed by its partner in Brussels-Antwerp, Whitewood — will soon be in charge of converting 21 of these buildings in the European Quarter into office, retail and residential space. The move will add approximately 750 to 800 new apartments to the district.
In total, the buildings cover an area of 300,000 square metres and SFPIM’s plan is to invest another €1 billion to renovate them.
The plan is to divide the buildings into 70 per cent sustainable offices, 30 per cent retail, public facilities and, above all, residential units, with the intention to double the number of housing units available in the European Quarter to facilitate the predicted arrival of office workers.
Pressure is growing on European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, with a growing number of former backers willing to express dissatisfaction with her work over the past five years. @moritzkoerner @Rob_Roos @NicolasBay_ https://t.co/IJelI4DxgF
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“We are also responding to the strong demand for diversification and additional housing in the European Quarter,” said Laurence Bovy, Chairman of SFPIM.
According to the wealth fund, the first permits should be obtained in 2026 and the first apartments and offices should be delivered in 2028.
The transaction consisted of two phases. First, the European Commission sold the 23 buildings to SFPIM. Then, SFPIM sold 21 buildings in the European Quarter to the Belgian fund Cityforward.
Two other buildings sold by the EC are located outside the European Quarter and are therefore not included in the Cityforward project.
They have instead been sold to developer Matexi, which will redevelop them into “sustainable and affordable rental and purchase apartments”, according to an official statement issued on April 29.
Following the COVID crisis, the EC decided it would halve the number of buildings it managed by 2030.
The SFPIM fund is run by four managers: Koenraad Van Loo (CEO), Michaël Vanloubbeeck (CFO), Céline Vaessen (Chief Investment Executive, CIE) and Tom Feys (CIE).
Three of them have links to liberal political parties.
In 1999 Van Loo became an employee in the cabinet of then-finance minister Didier Reynders (Mouvement Réformateur, MR).
In 2000 he was promoted to advisor and in 2003 to chief-of-staff.
He has subsequently been an Open Vld candidate in the Leuven municipal elections of 2006, 2012 and 2018.
Vanloubbeeck was head of cabinet for the Belgian Minister of Mobility François Bellot (MR) between 2016 and 2019.
Feys was senior advisor financial sector for the Minister of Finance Johan Van Overtveldt (N-VA) between 2015 and 2018.
German finance minister Christian Lindner has blamed European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen for Europe’s worsening economic performance. https://t.co/aNhUlKwTQv
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