Elbtower

""We have of course been following the reporting over the past years and have repeatedly asked ourselves how comfortable we feel with Signa," a board member of Signal Iduna tells in the autumn of 2023. In the end, the managers calm themselves down, saying that they have very little subordinated capital, very few profit participation certificates. Most of it is in mortgages and in a few senior bonds, he explains. It has always been important for Signal Iduna to be engaged in the prestigious locations and thus be properly secured. At the end of the day, the argument in case something went wrong was: then you would own the Alsterhaus in Hamburg, the Oberpollinger in Munich, the Elbtower in Hamburg and the Kaufhof in Hohen Straße in Cologne."

"In August 2022, Signa even closed the biggest deal in its history: Benko, with his Thai partners from the Central Group, bought the British luxury department store chain Selfridges for 4 billion pounds. And in Hamburg, Signa had already made all the preparations for the construction of the 245 meters tall Elbtower. The contract with the city was long signed, the excavation pit was dug, and the construction started promptly in January 2023."

"One month after the appearance on the French Riviera, Hamburg's Hafencity company posts a "property offer document" online. Those who want to realize the Elbtower can now apply for the property. To avoid a disaster like the concert hall of the Elbphilharmonie, the city is looking for a private investor. The Elphi pain runs deep: it took three times longer than planned to realize the concert hall; it cost the taxpayer more than eleven times as much as originally estimated, at 866 million euros. There are several interested parties for the Elbtower, such as Gerchgroup from Düsseldorf or Tishman Speyer from Hamburg. All applicants come with the Champions League of architects; the city has received designs from Zaha Hadid, Hadi Teherani, or Studio Libeskind."

"The letter that major developers found in their mail at the beginning of March 2024 does not skimp on superlatives. The offered construction project is described as a "once in a lifetime Development", furthermore "the crowning glory of Hafencity", "245 meters of passion". On 14 glossy pages of the "Investment Teaser", leading real estate broker CBRE delves deeply into the metaphor drawer of his profession. Small hitch: The project in question is the Elbtower, which – as the eloquent brokers correctly claim – urgently needs a "Restart". Instead of offering an "amazing view", the building's skeleton on the edge of Hamburg's Hafencity presents a pitiful sight. The construction site has been as dead as a deserted cemetery since spring 2024 and has been at a standstill since October last year; in January, the project company Elbtower Immobilien GmbH & Co. KG, which belongs to René Benko's Signa Group, filed for bankruptcy."

"Not only did HCOB get rid of its old premises to Signa and took up new offices from Signa, but it also sold the credit for the sale: 166 million euros went to Benko as financing. And even the law firm advising HCOB on the deal is a familiar one: Freshfields with Conradi, who also supported the City of Hamburg in the sale of the Elbtower."

"The Hamburg Commercial Bank then cleverly dealt with the property. After a phase of lease-back, during which the bank rented the building back from Signa, it plans to "move to the Elbtower, currently in planning, located in the east of Hamburg's new Hafencity district. About 11,000 square meters will be rented, with an option for an additional 2,000 square meters, for at least ten years," according to the press release."