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The future of the Basel Globus project is overshadowed by the impending collapse of the real estate empire of Viennese investor René Benko. The construction noise from the Globus construction site at Marktplatz is audible from afar. Despite the uncertainty, work continues at a breathtaking pace, with two basement floors almost complete and work on the ground floor underway.
Benko, once the prodigy of the Austrian economy, had an empire estimated at around 25 billion euros at its peak. He specialized in department stores in prime locations, focusing more on the valuable real estate than the struggling retail business. However, as interest rates rise, Benko’s empire is increasingly turbulent. The bankruptcy of the department store chain Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof, part of Benko’s Signa Holding, attracted significant attention. Benko’s corporate network has since repeatedly made headlines.
Last week, the situation escalated. It was revealed that the legendary German business consultant Roland Berger wants to divest his 1.64% stake in Benko’s Signa Group. This led to a construction stop on several Benko projects. On Friday, work on the Elbtower in Hamburg’s Hafen-City, worth around one billion euros, was halted. On Wednesday, “Spiegel” reported that the Hamburg government is threatening the investor with penalties and considering the demolition of the Elbtower. In Stuttgart, planning for a shopping complex was temporarily stopped. On Wednesday, “Handelsblatt” reported that entrepreneur Torsten Toeller, founder of the pet food chain Fressnapf, is divesting his 4.5% stake in Signa Holding.
From a Basel perspective, the main interest is the impact of these turbulences on the Basel Globus construction site. To recall, in 2020, Signa Holding, together with the Thai retail giant Central Group, acquired the Magazine zum Globus AG from Migros for around one billion francs. Globus has since been divided into a retail and a real estate company. The Basel Globus project would go to a consortium involving the Basler Kantonalbank (BKB), which is the lender at Marktplatz, if Benko and his Signa Group do not survive the crisis. However, BKB spokesperson Patrick Riedo did not provide any information on this on Wednesday, stating that they do not discuss customer relationships.
Meanwhile, construction continues diligently in the excavation pit at Marktplatz. The complexity of this network is now clear. We would like to know what will happen to the Basel construction pit: Will the Globus project be completed as planned or will there be a construction stop here too? And what happens if Benko’s empire collapses? But no one seems to be responsible.