BCR to sell former Bucharest HQ to Arab investor

An Arab investor is poised to become the new owner of Banca Comerciala Romana’s former headquarters in downtown Bucharest, according to profit.ro. The bank put the “Generala” Insurance Society Palace on University Square, on the market last spring with a starting price of more than €20m. JLL was hired to broker the sale. Andrei Vacaru, head of capital markets at JLL Romania said that BCR is currently in the due diligence stage, and the 16,000 sqm class A property, which was completed in 1906, will likely sell by the end of the year. The potential new owner, whose name was not disclosed, wants to renovate the historic palace into a hotel, Vacaru said.