Commerzbank AG’s main office tower in Frankfurt is experiencing difficulties in attracting fresh money, raising uncertainty over the future of an iconic but ageing building that’s been a defining feature of Germany’s financial capital and the lender’s corporate identity for three decades.
The owner of the tower, Samsung SRA Asset Management, has hired BNP Paribas SA to advise on the refinancing of an existing loan worth about €360 million ($403 million). The mandate also includes sounding out investors for around €150 million in preferred equity to pay for a much-needed renovation, people familiar with the matter said.
The search is proving difficult, partly because it’s not clear if Commerzbank will renew the current lease when it expires in 2032, the people said. The situation remains live and no definitive outcome has been reached, said one person. All asked not to be identified discussing private information.
Samsung SRA itself is reluctant to inject new equity into the 259-meters (850 feet) structure, the people added. Commerzbank is in talks with the South Korean investment firm and would be interested in a lease renewal once the tower has been refurbished, one of the people said.
BNP Paribas and Samsung SRA declined to comment.
The uncertainty over Germany’s tallest office building , which was designed by renowned architect Norman Foster and completed in 1997, could end up exacerbating a difficult time for Frankfurt’s office market. The number of empty towers across the city has been rising on the back of turbulence in commercial real estate.
The trend is partly driven by the need for many owners to spend sometimes hundreds of millions of euros to ensure that towers built decades ago can meet the stringent energy efficiency demands of today. Higher building costs and a trend for many staff to work from home, which has weighed on office demand, have been additional challenges.
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The planned move by Commerzbank into a new high-rise, as well as uncertainty about the impact of UniCredit SpA’s gradual takeover of the lender, has further raised scrutiny of the potential for a lease renewal at the old building, the people said.
Commerzbank plans to shift employees into a new office building, called Central Business Tower and located not far from the old one, starting in 2028.
A representative for the company said the lender can’t comment “at this time” on the impact the future move to the new tower will have on its other office locations.
Chief Executive Officer Bettina Orlopp last year announced some 3,300 job cuts in Germany, with Frankfurt set to bear the brunt. UniCredit has said it will seek to eliminate as many as 7,000 positions in Germany once it takes control.
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The loan on the Commerzbank tower comes from a consortium led by BayernLB that also includes Deutsche Pfandbriefbank, LBBW and UniCredit, according to a 2023 press release . The refinancing would create “a basis for further ESG investments into the building,” asset manager Patrizia said at the time, acting on behalf of Samsung SRA.
Representatives for Patrizia and for the lenders declined to comment.
Samsung SRA is part of Samsung’s finance companies and had about $17 billion investor capital under management as of the fourth quarter last year, according to its website . The firm previously invested in another Frankfurt office tower, known as “Silberturm.”