Echo Investment has achieved its strategic goal of becoming a nationwide leader in the residential sector. The developer finalized the acquisition of a majority stake in the Wrocław-based company Archicom, thus becoming the largest residential developer in Poland as the Echo-Archicom group.
After obtaining the consent of the antimonopoly office, Echo Investment concluded the agreement for purchase of a 66% stake in Wrocław-based Archicom. The Echo-Archicom group is the largest developer building apartments for sale and rent in Poland. Only in 2021 it will start the construction of 7,000 units in major Polish cities. In total, the group's land bank enables the construction of over 15,000 apartments for sale in the coming years.
“While maintaining a top position in commercial real estate sector, we have become a leader in residential. The strong brand of Archicom gives our group a strategic position in an extremely attractive market, such as Wrocław. We see a great potential in this city mainly as its residential market is currently very strong and has a stable basis for development in the future”, says Nicklas Lindberg, CEO of Echo Investment.
Archicom has been operating mainly on the Lower Silesian market since 1986, and since 2016 it has been listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. It grew out of a family design office with 160 completed investments, including the revitalized Browary Wrocławskie complex, the multi-award-winning Olimpia Port estate, as well as the first exclusive Platinum Lofts in Wrocław. Archicom is a strong, recognizable brand with almost a 15% share in the Wrocław residential market. Both companies will operate under a common strategy and in one capital group. The combination of the forces of both companies strengthens the group’s position of the strongest developer with the greatest potential in Wrocław.
After the transaction, Waldemar Olbryk, who so far was responsible for the development of the residential business at Echo Investment, became the CEO of Archicom. Agata Skowrońska-Domańska and Rafał Zboch took up positions of Members of the Board. Nicklas Lindberg, Maciej Drozd, Małgorzata Turek and Rafał Mazurczak became Members of the Supervisory Board.
“In the combination of strengths of the companies, we see many synergies, development opportunities and exchange of know-how. By integrating Archicom into the Echo structure, we are sure we can continue growing while creating projects that stand out on the market, as well as building a unique team of experts,” says Waldemar Olbryk, Archicom’s CEO.
Echo Investment has been building and selling apartments for 25 years. The company has already completed 89 residential projects with nearly 10,000 units in several major Polish cities. Echo is a leading real estate developer in Poland, the only developer with an extensive experience in main sectors of the real estate market: commercial and residential for sale, as well as for rent. The company is listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. Since 2019 the majority owner of the company has been WING, one of the largest real estate companies in Hungary.
JLL, EY, Dentons and cmT advised Echo Investment in this transaction.