Jones Lang LaSalle


CBRE Acquires Majority Interest in Russian Affiliate
April 19, 2006
By Amanda Marsh, Staff Writer

CB Richard Ellis Inc. announced today that it has acquired a 51 percent ownership interest in Russian affiliate Noble Gibbons from Alfa Capital Partners investors and shareholders. The firm will now operate as CB Richard Ellis Noble Gibbons.

"Russia is a very major, fast-growing economy," CB Richard Ellis Europe, Middle East and Asia executive chairman Michael Strong (pictured) told CPN this afternoon. That is exactly the type of market his company is tapping into. "We're constantly open to discussions that match our strategies ... and enable us to expand (into emerging markets)." Strong would not divulge what other companies CB is talking to, but hinted at additional European expansion this year.

CB has committed to purchasing the remaining outstanding shares of Noble Gibbons, and while that is subject to certain conditions, Strong estimated it will take place toward the end of the year. The firm, based in Central Moscow, has been a CB affiliate since 1995 and includes a full array of real estate advisory and management services. Its sales and leasing transaction volume was valued at approximately $233 million last year, and it manages more than 2.6 million square feet of commercial real estate. Strong said Noble Gibbons' operations and management will remain the same; they will just be under the CB brand.

The transaction continues CB's strategy of buying into leading affiliate firms in regional markets. Its most recent such deal was with Tokyo's IKOMA CB Richard Ellis K.K. in January, in which it also increased its ownership stake to 51 percent. It has made three other, smaller deals in Europe this year, including acquiring Belgian retail specialist Immobilière Développement & Gestion, forming a property management joint venture with Belgium's Sogesmaint and, most recently, acquiring British property consultant Austin Adams two weeks ago.