Investors See MIPIM 2013 As Recovery Launchpad

PARIS, Feb. 1, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- A record 60 pension and sovereign wealth funds and over 4,300 international investors are set to attend MIPIM 2013, amid predictions that real estate will experience a recovery later this year. Organised by Reed MIDEM, MIPIM will take place in Cannes, France, March 12-15.

According to Dr. Thomas Beyerle, Managing Director & Head of CS & Research, IVG Immobilien AG: "The main message for 2013 is simple: the Euro will survive - the end of the crisis is to be expected this year for most of the real estate markets. Financial market confidence has improved significantly - later in 2013 a gradual recovery should start."

MIPIM Director Filippo Rean says that this year's event is focussed on providing industry information, contacts and deal-making opportunities in order to prepare real estate executives for the short and mid-term future. "The main objective of MIPIM 2013, in view of the global economic situation, is to give all participants the best contacts and viewpoints from international experts so they can anticipate future developments," Rean noted.

Major international investors such as La Caisse des Depots, PGGM, Union Investment Real Estate, Aviva Investors, and Allianz Real Estate will access the 20,000m² of exhibition floor space hosting investment-seeking real estate projects from 80 countries. In addition, the MIPIM conference programme of over 70 sessions, offers a wide range of discussions on investment opportunities around the world including case studies covering China, Africa, Japan, Turkey, Brazil and Russia.

Among this year's hot conference topics is the question of how the liquidity crisis is carving out a new landscape for real estate financing. As Pierre Vaquier, CEO of AXA Real Estate, says: "Appetite for core and core-plus assets continues to be extremely strong with a focus on greater joint ventures and club deals. However, I think in 2013 we will start to see more realism in the pricing of non-prime assets, leading to increased liquidity as investors start feeling more comfortable with the associated risks."

Two conferences will analyse this development in real estate financing: 'Pooled funds at a cross roads?' on 12 March at 5:30pm with the participation of Dr Georg Allendorf, Head of RREEF Alternatives Germany, Austria and Switzerland, RREEF Management and 'Evolving investment structures in Europe: finding value in European funds and REITs' on 13 March at 2:30pm, with the participation of Andrew Smith, Global Head of Property, Aberdeen Asset Management.

On the same theme, MIPIM is hosting the second edition of RE-Invest, the institutional investors summit where over 30 of the most influential pension funds and sovereign wealth funds meet behind closed doors to debate the following theme: "Real estate strategies: Navigating through the uncertainty. Managing risks and opportunities against global economic headwinds." 32 institutions from 21 countries have already confirmed their presence for this summit, including, for the first time, the sovereign wealth funds of Kazakhstan (Samruk-Kazyna), Azerbaijan (State Oil Fund), and Angola (Fundo Soberano) and the endowment fund of The University of Texas Investment as well as the pension funds: Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Washington State Investment Board, Teacher Retirement of Texas and Progreso Panama. The summit is organised in partnership with IP Real Estate and KPMG.

Another major theme of the MIPIM conference programme is which regions are attracting most investor interest? MIPIM will provide a platform both for countries already targeted by investors, as well as for those offering new potential.

In Europe, for example, the English, French and German markets represent 80% of the European real estate investment market, with the French property sector attracting strong foreign interest. As Xavier Lepine, Chairman of the Management Board, La Francaise AM, commented: "In 2012, the French Investment market has - once again - proved very appealing to foreign investors. The market share of non-domestic buyers has actually reached approximately 50%, never seen since 2007. La Francaise REM expects that the economy will recover in the second half of 2013, which will have a positive impact on letting markets. We foresee fresh new investors coming to our markets."

A number of conferences will reflect these trends including: 'International capital for Germany - who are the deal makers?' with Dr Bernhard Scholz, Member of the Management Board, Deutsche Pfandbriefbank AG, to be held on 12 March at 10am; a session on the financing of British cities on 13 March at 4pm, as well as sessions on Italy, the Netherlands, Scandinavia and the Iberian Peninsula. In addition, Jurgen Stark, member of the Executive Board of the ECB from 2006 to 2011, will give his perspective on the global European economic situation and the financial crisis on 14 March at 10am.

Switching the focus to high-potential countries, no less than four conferences will discuss the investment possibilities offered by MIPIM's Country of Honour Turkey, plus an exhibition area of 1,000 m² displaying a variety of Turkish projects. Conferences on Russia on 12 March at 11:30am, Brazil on 13 March at 10am, and a day devoted to Asian countries, are also on the agenda.

Finally, a series of conferences will focus on special markets that are increasingly attracting investors, such as the health sector, with a conference on 'Healthcare real estate: a global overview'  on 13 March at 11:30am. The logistics and hospitality sectors are also in the spotlight, Stephen Joyce, President & CEO, Choice Hotels International, to discuss the hospitality market on 14 March at 3pm.

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Founded in 1963, Reed MIDEM is a leading organiser of professional, international tradeshows. Reed MIDEM events have established themselves as key dates in professional diaries. The company hosts MIPTV, MIPDOC, MIPCOM, and MIPJUNIOR for the television and digital content industries, MIDEM for music professionals, MIPIM, MIPIM Asia  and MAPIC for the property and retail real estate sectors and LeWeb Paris and LeWeb London for the internet sector.

Reed MIDEM is a division of Reed Exhibitions, the world's leading events organizer with over 500 events in 39 countries. In 2011 Reed brought together six million active event participants from around the world generating billions of dollars in business. Today Reed events are held throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Africa and organized by 33 fully staffed offices. Reed Exhibitions serves 44 industry sectors with trade and consumer events and is part of the Reed Elsevier Group plc, a world-leading publisher and information provider and a FTSE 100 company. www.reedexpo.com

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SOURCE Reed MIDEM