PwC pension fund in talks to take major stake in German skyscraper

Austrian developer CA Immo said it was in talks with one bidder to sell a stake in the 200-metre Tower 185 in Frankfurt, in which PwC is the largest tenant, as part of a wider disposal plan to cut its debt by 600m euros (£518m) this year.

In March, the Vienna-based company said Germany’s fourth-tallest skyscraper was worth about 500m euros and it hoped to sell a 75 per cent stake, representing a deal of about 375m euros.

The source did not confirm the size of the stake under discussion with the pension fund nor how close any deal was. CA Immo and PwC declined to comment.

The PwC pension fund is run for employees of the company in Germany and operates as a separate entity from the main accountancy firm, whose logo is at the top of the tower that opened at the end of 2011.

Real estate in major European cities is in demand among property investors for its safe returns in choppy financial markets, though some are slowly returning to the higher returns on offer in countries such as Spain as eurozone break-up speculation fades.

Local real estate agents said the tower’s location may explain why it hadn’t been snapped up already, with the building lying several hundred metres from the main financial district.