Finance news in brief: 8 October 2016

Logistics consolidation ahead The logistics sector is set for a prolonged period of consolidation that will see regional players bought up, predicts Logicor. The company and its 140m sq ft portfolio is expected to be divested by Blackstone next year. UK becomes more challenging Political uncertainty has made the UK a “challenging” place to invest, said Anne Kavanagh, Axa IM – Real Assets’ global head of asset management and transactions. Axa and its co-investors are currently in discussions over whether to proceed with the development of 22 Bishopsgate, EC2. Poland could be Brexit winner Poland could benefit from financial services firms moving from London, according to UBS. The possibility of a “hard Brexit” without a passporting deal with the EU could mean the country becomes a low-cost alternative for banks.  Lenders cautious pre-Brexit Lenders are being more cautious in the UK market than they are stating publicly, said Marco Rampin, CBRE’s head of Europe debt and structured finance. Blaming political uncertainty, he added: “The lending environment in the UK has slowed down considerably.” Hear the Expo Real experts EG interviewed many of the finance leaders at Expo Real this week, including Logicor’s Mo Barzegar, Axa’s Anne Kavanagh, UBS’s Gunnar Herm, and CBRE’s Marco Rampin. Listen to them all at: http://estatesgazette.podbean.com