Germany's DEGI Postpones Acquisition of GE/Quinlan-owned Mall of Sofia

"Due to the current market situation we are postponing the acquisition and we are planning to start again next year, in the first quarter," a company representative told SeeNews on condition of anonymity.

"[...] The financial environment is very unclear so we have to reconsider the basics of the deal and therefore we are postponing the acquisition," the representative said, adding there is no fixed deadline for the conclusion of the deal and that there is also an option for DEGI to walk away. "There is always an option because we have not signed the contract so far."

Last month, Bulgaria's competition watchdog said that DEGI planned to acquire Mall of Sofia from commercial investor GE Real Estate Central & Eastern Europe, part of General Electric, and Irish real estate and investment advisory group Quinlan Private for an undisclosed sum.

DEGI, which stands for Deutsche Gesellschaft fuer Immobilienfonds, a unit of global Aberdeen Asset Management, has no operations in Bulgaria to date.