Catalyst Capital has acquired the Weißeritz-Park in Freital near Dresden for EUR 24.8 mln on behalf of its Catalyst European Property Fund. The retail park, which is anchored by a Kaufland hypermarket and has a gross lettable area of 20,000 m2, was acquired with the cooperation of the holder of the loan GE Capital, the financial services unit of General Electric.

The purchase price represents a yield of 10.2% and a discount of over 30% on the original price paid by the failed British celebrity fund Active Asset Investment Management Limited (aAIM) which acquired the park in late 2007 for EUR 37.5 mln, or an initial yield of roughly 6.5%.

GE Capital had gained control of the underlying loan following the collapse of Capmark Financial, one of America's biggest commercial property lenders in 2009, which in turn had obtained control of aAIM’s loan portfolio following the failure of one of its key funds in December 2008.

Catalyst Capital‘s Frankfurt office is currently in talks with the local authorities on a renovation and extension of the German shopping park. The transaction marks Catalyst's third acquisition within a year following the purchase of the Stratford Shopping Centre from Land Securities Group in August 2010 and an office property on New Bridge St in the City of London. The London-[headquartered fund manager is also believed to be close to finalising an acquisition in France and is in an advanced due-diligence process to acquire an office building in Edinburgh. The company is also believed to be targeting Warsaw for new acquisitions.

In 2008 Catalyst Capital reportedly took over the mandate of aAIM’s key fund, the £2.1bn Symmetry fund, from JCCO 114 fund after JCCO 114 went into administration.