Blackstone has returned to the European commercial mortgage-backed security trail, launching the first single-borrower securitisation of 2025. Sequoia Logistics 2025-1 DAC is also the largest euro denominated issuance since 2021.
The €525 million CMBS is collateralised by one senior loan and is backed by 53 urban logistics assets, 95% of which in last-mile locations in established logistics markets.
The geographical exposure is France (44%), Finland (27%), Netherlands (26%) and a very small part in Germany.
The transaction has been arranged by Barclays as the sole arranger, with Deutsche Bank as book runner. The transaction is expected to close in two to three weeks.
Last week, presales ratings were assigned to Pembroke Property Finance 3 DAC, a €343.6 million multi-borrower securitisation focused on Irish properties.
Finance Ireland, the non-bank lender owned 48% by Pimco and 42% by M&G, is the sponsor, which comprises 110 non-recourse commercial property loans to 68 borrowers secured against 234 properties across the Republic of Ireland.
That transaction is unusually granular in terms of loan count, borrower count and property count. Most European transactions have focused on industrial and had Blackstone as the sponsor.
US private equity giant Blackstone has been the most common factor in the stuttering European CMBS market in the last two years.
CMBS deals priced tighter as 2024 progressed thanks to falling interest rates. There were five European deals in the year, totalling €2.3 billion. The only deal that did not involve Blackstone was Vantage’s £600 million data centre CMBS. Three of Blackstone's transactions involved logistics properties, underlining investor demand for the asset class.
In 2023, there were three CMBS transactions, totalling €909 million, 40% less than the €1.5 billion issued in the first four months of 2022, before the market shut down. The figures are way down on the €7 billion issued in 2021.