The Sigma Group is in a serious crisis. Following the withdrawal of company founder René Benko, large real estate projects such as the Elbtower in Hamburg could be on the rocks.
According to official information, the Signa subsidiary Signa Real Estate Management Germany GmbH has filed for insolvency. As revealed on Monday from an online publication on insolvency announcements, the Berlin lawyer Torsten Martini has been appointed as insolvency administrator. Several media outlets had reported on the bankruptcy filing at the Berlin-Charlottenburg district court since Friday.
Signa Real Estate Management Germany GmbH manages and develops Signa Group properties and, according to the online publication on insolvency announcements, it also acts as a property developer. According to a publication in the Federal Gazette, 139 people worked there in the 2021 financial year.
The Signa Group has been in crisis for several weeks. The group’s founder, René Benko, has now withdrawn from leadership. Signa is building the 245 meter high Elbtower in Hamburg. The group also includes the department store group Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof, which has already gone through two insolvency proceedings. Since the start of the war in Ukraine, the real estate industry has had to contend with increased construction and energy costs as well as higher interest rates – and the Signa Group was not spared from this.
It initially remained unclear what consequences the insolvency of Signa Real Estate Management Germany GmbH would have for other parts of the Signa Group. Signa also did not respond to several inquiries as to whether other parts of the Signa Group were also insolvent.
Source: Stern
