In Vienna and Berlin

Signa: Several luxury properties about to be sold

The Park Hyatt hotel in Vienna's city center is to be sold by mid-2025.

(Bild: APA/GEORG HOCHMUTH)

While Italian authorities have set their sights on Signa founder René Benko, the sale of some of the insolvent group's luxury properties in Berlin and Vienna, which are bundled in Signa Prime Selection AG, is making progress. The Park Hyatt hotel in Vienna's city center is to be sold by mid-2025.

The pompous German headquarters, the 33-storey Upper West high-rise building, is to be sold before the end of December, according to the insolvency administrator's latest report. The Park Hyatt hotel in Vienna's city center is to be sold by mid-2025.

VfGH building complex also on the verge of sale
According to the report by law firm Abel, the "Renngasse Wien" liquidation process is also planned to be completed by the beginning of 2025. This refers to the building complex that houses the Constitutional Court and the Kunstforum. The deadline for binding offers ends on December 6. "Due to the positive feedback", there is confidence that a signing will take place soon.

Sales process drags on
The process of selling the Signa properties has been somewhat protracted so far. According to the law firm Abel, the legal dispute over the type of proceedings has delayed the sale. The change in the type of proceedings entails "a not inconsiderable risk of a substantial deterioration in the quota". Creditors could therefore receive less from the insolvency estate than originally thought.

As a result of the Supreme Court's decision, the Commercial Court of Vienna changed Signa Prime's insolvency proceedings from restructuring to bankruptcy by order dated October 31, 2024, withdrew self-administration and appointed Abel Rechtsanwälte GmbH as insolvency administrator.

Real estate market fails to recover
According to the report to creditors, although the expected turnaround in interest rates has since taken place, the recovery in the real estate market, particularly in commercial real estate, that market participants had predicted has not materialized.

The marketing process for the Upper West high-rise building on Breitscheidplatz (Berlin-Charlottenburg) between Kurfürstendamm and the zoo was reportedly launched at the beginning of June. In September, offers were submitted and bidder discussions took place. They are now in the home straight: Further negotiations have now taken place "with the granting of exclusivity for a limited period of time". The contract is expected to be signed "in the course of December".

The Upper West (Mitte) high-rise in Berlin

(Bild: AFP)

The structuring of the sales process for the Am Hof property, i.e. the Park Hyatt Vienna, is currently being coordinated. The aim is to achieve the best possible sale of the property as part of a structured bidding process by mid-2025.

However, the insolvency administrator is not only collecting money through the sale of properties. In October and November, a total of 16 avoidance actions were filed - with increased claims totaling 471 million euros, compared to 456 million euros previously. In addition, the fee payments received in 2023 were contested out of court against the members of the Supervisory Board. The majority of the Supervisory Board members had arranged for these amounts to be repaid.