Gyorgy Waberer to list logistics company BILK on Budapest bourse

Gyorgy Waberer to list logistics company BILK on Budapest bourse
Gyorgy Waberer (right), pictured with Prime Minister Viktor Orban, is government commissioner on logistics matters.
By bne IntelliNews May 29, 2018

Gyorgy Waberer, the former owner of haulage company Waberer, plans to list shares of Budapest logistics terminal BILK on the Budapest Stock Exchange in June, local media reported on May 28.

“I started the development of BILK as a greenfield investment 15 years ago and it has become one of the largest logistic parks in Hungary,” he told business website Portfolio in an interview. The time has come to sell minority stakes in it to raise capital for financing other real estate developments, he added.

In 2003 Waberer responded to state railway MÁV's call for offers for a partner in building an intermodal terminal in Budapest. The railway container terminal and the warehousing units of BILK have complemented each other perfectly. 

Waberer, who sold his stakes in his Waberer, one of the largest haulage companies in the region, has become an active investor on the real estate market with the new development of nearly 60,000 m2 of space.

In addition to 4,000 m2 at BILK, other investment projects in Wábererʼs portfolio include a 22,000 m2 office building, a 20,000 m2 luxury residential building in the Buda hills, and a 15,000 m2 development at the port of Csepel, in the south of the capital.

In the interview, Waberer named the positive regulatory environment for the listing of BILK, which could be transformed into a real estate investment trust, a publicly listed company that invest directly in real estate projects. The advantage of such trusts is that they are exempted from paying corporate income tax and local business tax, although they must pay shareholders 90% of the profit as dividend.

The intermodal terminal is located in the southern part of Budapest at the intersection of all major international transit routes. In addition to optimal public road and direct rail access, connections to the waterway and air routes are also available within 15 km from the Csepel Freeport and the Liszt Ferenc International Airport. BILK has 182,000 m² of warehouse and office space operating at 98% of its capacity.

The company plans to add another 30,000 m² storage space in the next few years, company CEO Livia Waberer told Portfolio.hu. BILK realised HUF3.5bn (€11bn) in revenues, 70% of which comes from real estate leasing.

The listing of BILK would come a year after the debut of Waberer shares on the BSE. The haulier raised €50mn in an IPO, the largest in more 20 years on the Budapest bourse, where it is now the fifth-largest company in terms of market capitalisation. BILK used the funding to close the acquisition of the Polish freight transport company Link. 

After 35 years at the helm, two years ago Waberer resigned as CEO of the company he founded and sold his stakes to investment fund Mid Europa Partners. During his leadership, Waberer became the largest player in the full truckload shipping segment (FTL) with a fleet of 3,550, of which the average age is below two years.

The share of logistics in Hungary's economic output is still only 6-7% but that could be higher due to its favourable geographical location, Waberer said, who is also the prime ministerial commissioner for freight forwarding and logistics matters.

Waberer was ranked the 11th richest man in Hungary with HUF84bn (€263mn).

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