LONDON—Gramercy Property Trust Inc. is leading a joint venture of investment partners to form Gramercy Europe, which has closed with 350 million euros in equity capital, or about US $428 million. The London-based JV will target single-tenant net leased assets and sale-leaseback opportunities across Europe.

“We believe this new investment vehicle gives Gramercy shareholders access to European net leased assets in scale and in partnership with deep-pocketed and sophisticated partners,” says Gordan DuGan, GPT's CEO and an appointee to Gramercy Europe's board. “Gramercy will have a fully-integrated team on the ground that we have worked with in the past and a strategy that I have many years of experience with. We hope to replicate the success we have had with Gramercy Property Trust with our effort on Gramercy Europe.”

Simultaneously with the closing on the Gramercy Europe JV, GPT and its partners purchased ThreadGreen Europe Ltd., which will manage the investment vehicle on a day-to-day basis. Deal terms were not disclosed.

ThreadGreen's principals, including managing director Alistair Calvert and director Michael Heal, ran the London office of W. P. Carey from 2004 to 2006, during DuGan's tenure as CEO of that company. ThreadGreen currently manages about US $250 million worth of single-tenant industrial and office assets in Germany, Finland and Switzerland.

GPT's partners in the Gramercy Europe venture include investment entities managed by EJF Capital LLC, Fir Tree Partners and Senator Investment Group LP. Gramercy Europe will invest mainly in single-tenant industrial, office and specialty retail assets in Germany, the Netherlands, the Nordic region, the United Kingdom and other targeted European countries.

The total equity capital available to Gramercy Europe includes an initial commitment of 250 million euros from GPT and its co-investors, along with an additional capital accordion of 100 million euros. Along with DuGan and other representatives appointed by GPT, Gramercy Europe's board includes Lindsay Sparacino of EJF, Jarret Cohen of Fir Tree and Michael Simanovsky of Senator.

DuGan's former company, WPC, has been an active investor in European net lease for some time. This past Friday, WPC announced the acquisition of Royal Vopak's headquarters building and an adjacent multi-tenant high-rise in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, through its CPA 18—Global non-traded REIT. The purchase price was $86 million; the low-rise tower will be net-leased to Royal Vopak, the world's largest independent tank storage provider, on a long-term basis. Starwood Capital Group has also made recent investments in Norway and Sweden.