PRETORIA – Musical chairs in the listed property sector continued yesterday with Hyprop chief executive Pieter Prinsloo, who resigned earlier this week, allegedly because he and his family were emigrating, appointed to head up listed Redefine Properties’ new Europe division effective from February next year.
Redefine chief executive Andrew Konig yesterday said the new role was necessitated by the group advancing its geographic diversification strategy through direct investment in Central and Eastern Europe.
Konig said Prinsloo’s appointment demonstrated Redefine’s strong commitment to expand its operations in Europe across different sectors.
“Pieter is a seasoned industry veteran with more than 21 years of relevant experience and is a fantastic addition to our leadership team.
“We are confident that Pieter will build on our presence in Poland and continue to expand the strong global brand that Redefine investors have come to expect."
Hyprop said on Tuesday that Morne Wilken, who joined listed MAS Real Estate as chief executive in January this year after being chief executive of listed Attacq from July 2011 to December last year, would become its chief executive from December 27 this year.
MAS said Wilken had informed the company that becoming chief executive of Hyprop was an attractive opportunity for him and his family to relocate back to South Africa because they have not settled in the Isle of Man. It said that upon Morkel’s departure on December 14, current MAS chief financial officer Malcolm Levy would act as interim chief executive until a permanent replacement had been appointed.
Prinsloo’s appointment at Redefine follows the company’s recent acquisition of a 95 percent share in a portfolio of nine operating logistics properties located throughout Poland for €185.8 million (R2.9 billion).
Redefine has also entered into a five-year exclusive priority right involving a pipeline of 24 new warehousing and logistics developments with Panattoni, a market leader in the leasing and development of logistics properties in Europe.