Morgan Stanley fund acquires Moscow's Metropolis mall for $1.2 bn: report

23 Feb 2013

Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing (MSREI), the global real estate investment management arm of Morgan Stanley, yesterday acquired the Metropolis shopping mall in Moscow from Capital Partners, for a reported $1.2 billion, Russia's biggest-ever commercial real estate deal.

Without disclosing the financial terms of the deal, MSREI said, "The acquisition of the Metropolis shopping centre is the largest-ever transaction in the Russian commercial real estate market."

Several sources told Reuters that MSERI paid $1.2 billion for the transaction.

Developed by Capital Partners, Metropolis shopping and Entertainment Mall, opened in 2009 and has 82,000sqm of fully enclosed retail accommodation and 2,900 parking spaces.

It is Russia's premier retail development and located in the centre of Moscow along the Leningradskiy highway and next to the metro station Voykovskaya.

Metropolis is one of the most visited shopping centre in Moscow with approximately 55,000 customers per day in 2012.  The complex is fully leased and has a waiting list for retailers wanting to rent space.