KaDeWe changes hands as the list of insolvent Signa companies lengthens

Following the insolvency proceedings and restructuring under self-administration of Signa Prime and Signa Development Selection AG, two subsidiaries of the Signa Group, the iconic Berlin department store Kaufhaus des Westens (KaDeWe) has now been sold. The buyer, Thai Central Group, has agreed to acquire the entire KaDeWe property. The transaction was valued at one billion euros according to Berlin’s Senator for Economic Affairs, Franziska Giffey (SPD). Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) has also reported that Signa Prime is actively seeking buyers for its remaining properties, including the renowned Swiss department store chain Globus. In a related development, Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof, the Signa-owned German department store chain, also filed for insolvency at the end of the year, and now the investment company for department stores, Signa Retail GmbH, has also filed for bankruptcy. Signa Retail held stakes in Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof, KaDeWe, Globus in Switzerland, and the British Selfridges Group, among others. Following the takeover by a new owner, Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof will be rebranded as Galeria from the end of July, as announced by the insolvency administrator Stefan Denkhaus in early May. Additionally, 16 of the chain’s 92 department stores will be closed, as revealed by Denkhaus in late April. As the insolvencies within the Signa Group continue to mount, the Austrian Public Prosecutors Office for Economic Affairs and Corruption has launched an investigation into company founder René Benko. The investigation relates to the extension of a loan totalling EUR 25 million, with Benko allegedly having misled the lending bank as to the Signa Group’s financial situation.