Privately owned real estate investor and developer, Firethorn Trust, has exchanged contracts to sell its UK logistics assets for £550 million to Cain International (“Cain”) the privately held investment firm operating in the United States and Europe.
The Grade A logistics portfolio comprises seven UK sites, totalling 3.25 million sq ft across 22 assets, including two newly built developments, and five consented land sites that are on course for completion in 2022 and H1 2023.
The acquisition represents Cain’s entry into the UK logistics market. As part of the transaction, Firethorn Trust will develop the remaining sites and act as leasing and asset manager across the portfolio on behalf of Cain International.
Peter Mather & Chris Webb, Founding Partners of Firethorn Trust said: “We have created a strong logistics warehousing pipeline over the last three years in very good accessible locations throughout the UK. With a primary focus on developing high-quality, Grade A, sustainable warehousing solutions, our sites are attracting high quality occupiers, which means strong potential for long-term income and capital appreciation.”
“We are delighted to have signed a sale and forward funding agreement with Cain International, a highly regarded global investor, who shares our values and is ready to leverage the development opportunities we have created. We look forward to working with Cain International to grow the UK logistics platform to in excess of £1bn of value over the next 12-18 months. Firethorn is seeking new sites across the UK to develop big-box, mid-box and last-mile logistics warehousing, and we will continue to deliver to net-zero carbon standards, with ESG credentials remaining a primary focus.”
Daniel Harris, Senior Managing Director and Head of European Investment for Cain International said: “This acquisition was a unique off-market opportunity for us to enter the UK logistics market through a portfolio of considerable scale and quality, as well as with a respected long-term partner. This is part of an exciting period of growth for Cain in the UK and follows our recent announcement that we plan to build a portfolio of PBSA assets worth £1.5 billion.”
“These well-located assets are in a good position to take advantage of both existing and future structural trends as the wider logistics sector looks set to continue its impressive outperformance of recent years. We look forward to working with Firethorn Trust in the coming years to realise our strategy here.”
Completion of the transaction is scheduled to take place late Q1 2022.
Stephenson Harwood, PwC, Eastdil Secured and Quartz acted on behalf of Firethorn Trust.
Taylor Wessing, KPMG, Cushman & Wakefield and Paragon acted on behalf of Cain International.
Since formation in 2018, Firethorn has acquired 190 acres across 7 sites and is delivering over 3.25million sq ft of logistics warehousing accommodation in Northampton, Leighton Buzzard, Ellesmere Port, Peterborough, Leeds, Barnsley and Belvedere, South East London.
Cain International is a privately held investment firm operating in the United Kingdom, Europe and the United States. Founded in 2014, the firm invests in real estate debt, equity, and experiential businesses, and currently manages $10.8 billion in assets (as of 31 Dec. 2021).