Latest news with #Max-HervéGeorge
Entrepreneur
06-05-2025
- Business
- Entrepreneur
Strategic Mergers and Global Growth: How Integration and Diversification Built a $11 Billion Investment Platform
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. You're reading Entrepreneur Asia Pacific, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media. The strategic vision and clear direction behind Icona Capital and Stoneweg's merger to create SWI Group exceeds their USD 11 billion multi-region investment portfolio in Europe, North America, and Asia. The initiative represents more than just rebranding because it transforms modern international investment platforms into a new era of possibilities. The journey began under the leadership of Max-Hervé George at Icona Capital when Stoneweg became the firm's Swiss investment advisory partner in 2020. Their collaboration gained significant media attention with the acquisition of a 211,000 sqm Casbega bottling plant in Fuenlabrada, Madrid. Thor Equities later purchased the property to develop a USD 650 million state-of-the-art data center—an opportunity first identified by George and his team and executed in partnership with Stoneweg. Strategic Synergy and Shared Vision Through his analysis, Max-Hervé George saw how Icona Capital's alternative investment methods would collaborate with Stoneweg's real estate knowledge. George has assumed the Chair role at SWI Group to emphasize that the merged entity expands markets while offering expanded products to draw investment from institutional clients. Through strategic partnership, the venture builds an international investment solution yet stays closely connected to local market dynamics, supported by local workforce expertise. As Co-CEO of SWI Group, Jaume Sabate formerly served as Stoneweg CEO before the teams converged effortlessly. "We established multiple acquisition alliances with Max-Hervé George and his Icona Capital teams; therefore, we look forward to uniting our work locations," he declared. SWI Group was officially formed in 2024 from the combined strengths of Stoneweg Real Estate Foundations and Icona Capital's various portfolio holdings. Icona Capital expanded its operations to luxury hospitality through the acquisition of a Maldivian island that would become an ultra-luxury resort development project prior to the merger. Through its fundamental business strategy, SWI Group continues to develop digital infrastructure and logistics and warehousing systems, which represent prominent growth markets in the modern global economy. Landmark Acquisition and Increased AUM A crucial acquisition moment happened when Redefine Properties, together with Oak Grove, jointly invested USD 330 million to buy Cromwell Property Group's European fund management infrastructure with its associated investments. Under the deal, the company obtained USD 4.2 billion worth of assets under management through a stake purchase in Cromwell European REIT, which amounted to 27.8 per cent. The company took a significant step towards establishing its institutional infrastructure, according to George. The organization enhances its exposure to modern business sectors as well as international markets, which play an essential role in its multi-asset structure. A Global Platform with Local Expertise SWI Group currently has over 350 professionals working in 26 offices distributed across 18 countries. The company unites its international investment ideas with domestic market knowledge through a single operation. The company plans infrastructure-driven expansion through its dedication to the UK market and its goal to enhance data center and logistics operations. The transformation of Icona Capital and Stoneweg into SWI Group is more than a corporate restructuring, it's a case study in how to scale through strategic integration. By leveraging complementary strengths and maintaining an agile, multi-asset investment approach, SWI Group offers a blueprint for converting niche expertise into global dominance.
Gulf Today
02-04-2025
- Business
- Gulf Today
SWI Group: A new $11 billion titan reshaping alternative investment landscape
Gulf Network French billionaire Max-Hervé George orchestrates landmark merger creating powerful new investment platform The alternative investment sector witnessed a transformative development last week as SWI Group officially launched, marking the culmination of a strategic merger between Icona Capital and Stoneweg. With combined assets under management exceeding US $11 billion, this newly formed entity has instantly positioned itself as a major player across multiple investment categories. French entrepreneur Max-Hervé George, the driving force behind this integration, emphasized that the merger creates unprecedented opportunities for institutional investors seeking diversified exposure. "This key development elevates both organizations into a truly global platform with specialized expertise across complementary sectors," he noted during the announcement. Spearheaded by co-CEOs Max-Hervé George (former CEO of Icona Capital) and Jaume Sabater (former CEO of Stoneweg), SWI Group is poised to leverage its international network of over 350 professionals across 18 countries to pursue investments through two specialized divisions. Icona Alternatives will spearhead activities in Private Equity, Venture Capital, Special Situations, Liquid Strategy, Private Credit, and Sports & Entertainment, while Stoneweg Real Assets concentrates on Hospitality, Logistics, Offices, Real Estate, Infrastructure, Data Centers, and Experiential Ventures. The formation comes on the heels of a significant $303 million acquisition of Cromwell Property Group's European fund management platform and affiliated co-investments, which includes a 27.8% stake in Cromwell European REIT. This has added $4.2 billion in real estate assets under management, thereby substantially broadening SWI Group's European footprint. According to Max-Hervé George, SWI's strength lies in the union between its two companies, for it now provides enhanced efficiency and expanded international reach that delivers more attractive investment opportunities than either organization could offer independently. "Our approach centers on diversification and long-term value creation through expertise across multiple asset classes," he explained. Industry analysts view this coalition as particularly timely, arriving amid growing institutional demand for alternative investments with strong risk-adjusted returns. The merger's scale enables SWI Group to offer institutional-grade investment products with the agility typically associated with boutique investment firms. Max-Hervé George's vision for SWI Group reflects his broader investment philosophy of combining a global perspective with specialized local knowledge—a philosophy that is further reflected in the new brand's USP: a global presence anchored by local talent who are veterans in their chosen fields and who boast unparalleled local knowledge and networks that are extremely pertinent to such specialized jobs. The group's dual-division structure allows for specialized focus while maintaining coordinated strategic direction, positioning SWI Group to capitalize on cross-sector investment themes that increasingly characterize the alternative investment landscape.
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Icona Capital and Stoneweg Unite to Form $11 Billion SWI Group
LONDON, UK / / April 1, 2025 / Icona Capital and Stoneweg have announced they will now operate under the unified SWI Group brand, managing over US 11 billion in combined assets under management (AUM). The integration of Icona Capital, a London-based alternative investment group, with Stonweg, a Geneva-headquartered real estate investment group, marks the creation of a significant new player in the alternative investment space. French billionaire Max-Hervé George leads strategic merger creating major alternative investment platform The newly formed group will operate across European and US markets, spanning multiple sectors but operating across two distinct business lines. Stoneweg Real Assets will focus primarily on strategies across Living, Hospitality, Logistics, Offices, Real Estate, Infrastructure, Data Centers, and Experiential Ventures. Meanwhile, Icona Alternatives will concentrate on Private Equity, Venture Capital, Special Situations, Liquid Strategy, Private Credit, Sports & Entertainment. Max-Hervé George whose vision has been instrumental in orchestrating this ambitious merger, shared his perspective: "This key development elevates both companies and creates a highly attractive institutional investment platform with global reach and local talent, across diverse complementary sectors." George will helm the group as co-CEO with Jaume Sabater, former CEO of Stoneweg. A cornerstone of this coalition was the recent acquisition of Cromwell Property Group's European fund management platform and associated co-investments for $303 million. This strategic move included a 27.8% stake in Cromwell European REIT, adding $4.2 billion of real estate assets under management. "SWI provides the benefits of a larger integrated business, increasing AUM, efficiency, international presence, and essentially delivering more attractive investment opportunities," Max-Hervé George added. "Our strategy emphasizes diversification and long-term value creation across multiple asset classes." With over 350 professionals working across 26 offices in 18 countries, SWI Group boasts substantial global reach. The company identifies its combination of international presence and local expertise in the form of their employees as a key competitive advantage. The scale achieved enhances SWI Group's appeal to institutional investors seeking diversified alternative investment opportunities. With the formation of SWI Group, Max-Hervé George continues to expand his influence in the alternative investment space, creating a platform that combines global reach with specialized expertise across multiple asset classes and geographies. Media DetailsCompany Name: Icona CapitalContact Person: Alexander MaxwellMail: harry@ London, United KingdomWebsite: SOURCE: Icona Capital View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire Sign in to access your portfolio
Telegraph
25-03-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
French ‘golden boy' to invest billions in Britain
A French entrepreneur who built his fortune from lucrative life insurance contracts has launched a new fund to invest billions of pounds in Britain. Max-Hervé George, 35, is preparing to buy swathes of data centres across the UK, buoyed by the Government's push to rip up planning rules and turbo-charge artificial intelligence. He has made the investment pledge after setting up a new €10bn (£8.4bn) fund called SWI, formed from a merger between Mr George's Icona Capital and Switzerland's Stoneweg, a fund manager. At least half of the €10bn pot could be ultimately invested in British assets, Mr George said, which would bolster Sir Keir Starmer's attempts to attract overseas investors and improve economic growth. It marks the latest twist in the career of Mr George, who is best known for cashing in on 'golden ticket' life insurance contracts sold by Aviva France. Under the terms of these ill-conceived contracts, which he first received from his father aged seven, customers could trade funds based on last week's prices. Not only did this allow contract-holders to back-pedal on significant price swings to avoid losses, but it also meant they could switch to rising assets based on historical prices. Either way, profits were guaranteed as long as they acted within a week. Mr George declined to comment on his contracts with Aviva, which took the entrepreneur to court in an effort to limit the payments. However, his fortune has paved the way for this new SWI fund, which is based in London and has more than 350 employees. Mr George, who is chairman of SWI, said: 'We have some assets already but are looking to invest more. We are intensively looking to invest in data centres and have already identified some sites.' It comes after the Government last year designated data centres as critical national infrastructure. This will allow ministers to overrule local councils to force through data centres, which Sir Keir has deemed essential to help meet the growing demand for cloud computing and AI. Mr George welcomed the changes in the rules, as he indicated the UK is currently a more attractive investment destination than France. As well as targeting data centres, Mr George said he will also be looking to buy up warehouses and logistics hubs. He said this is in response to the changing retail landscape, which is increasingly dominated by delivery giants such as Amazon. 'Globally speaking, we are looking at hospitality, commercial assets and multifamily housing,' he said. 'But we are looking mainly at logistics and data centres in the UK.'
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
SWI Group formed from Icona Capital and Stoneweg to operate with combined assets of more than €10 billion
Aggregate assets under management of €10 billion in the European and US Living, light industrial, logistics, Data Centres, hospitality, office, and cultural and leisure sectors SWI Group has over 350 professionals located in 25 offices across the world Integration of SWI Group provides both scale and product diversification to attract higher levels of institutional investment as a leading alternative investment platform LONDON, GENEVA, and LUXEMBOURG, March 25, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Icona Capital, the London and Luxembourg based alternative investment group, and Stoneweg, the real estate investment group headquartered in Geneva, today announce they will now both operate under the newly formed SWI Group brand with more than €10 billion of assets under management. Together Icona Capital and Stoneweg recently completed the acquisition of Cromwell Property Group's European fund management platform and associated co-investments. The €3.9 billion of real estate assets, which included 27.8% of the Cromwell European REIT, were acquired for a total consideration of €280 million and provide SWI with immediate growth, scale and product diversification capabilities. New management talent has also recently joined SWI Group and have already been instrumental in adapting the Group's strategy as a leading alternative platform whose mission is to become more scalable, elevate growth and optimise more investment opportunities. SWI Group defines its business activities into two distinct business groupings: Stoneweg Real Assets, and Icona Alternatives. Stoneweg Real Assets will primarily focus its strategies across Living, Hospitality, Logistics, Offices, Real Estate, Infrastructure, Data Centres, and Experiential Ventures. Icona Alternatives will concentrate on Private Equity, Venture Capital, Special Situations, Liquid Strategy, Private Credit, Sports & Entertainment. SWI Group has over 350 employees spread across 25 offices, in 17countries in Europe, North America, and Singapore. A strong global presence with local based talent is one of the key advantages of the SWI Group. The majority of the team have been experts within their fields for many years with both local knowledge and the network required to carry out their specialized asset management roles. Max-Hervé George, former Chairman and CEO Icona Capital, now Chairman and Co-CEO SWI Group said, "The creation of the SWI Group is a key development and elevates the combined standing of both Icona and Stoneweg. We have created a highly attractive institutional investment platform based around our global reach with local talent. It brings together the benefits of a larger integrated business, increased AUM, enhanced efficiency and our global presence. At its heart, this combination will deliver more attractive opportunities for our clients. SWI Group will be more robust, more diverse and increase our capacity to deliver continued growth and, with the support of third-party institutional capital, allow us to execute on more investment opportunities." "This integration is a milestone in Stoneweg's growth trajectory and strengthens our position in the market as a leading real asset investment group," added Jaume Sabater, former CEO of Stoneweg and now Co-CEO of SWI Group. "We have worked with Max-Hervé George and his teams from Icona Capital on numerous acquisitions and we are eager to work together as one team. Following on from the recent acquisition of the Cromwell Property Group's European Platform, we are now taking another transformative step as we combine our two dynamic businesses into their two respective fields of expertise: Real Assets and Alternative Investments, all under the single, powerful brand of the SWI Group". Notes to Editors: About SWI Group SWI Group ( ) is an alternative investment platform driven by a strong entrepreneurial spirit that operates in a number of sectors, including Data Centres, Real Estate, Credit, and the Financial Sector. The company's investment strategies are grounded in thorough research, in-depth first-hand knowledge, and the ability to efficiently implement strategies to maximise the greatest return potential. SWI Group relies on local operating teams to identify, develop and manage opportunities around the world, both real estate and investment strategies. SWI Group currently has over €10 billion of assets under management and more than 350 employees across 26 offices across the world. About Icona Capital Icona Capital Group is an independent investment firm and financial advisory business established by Max-Hervé George. It is registered and headquartered in London with further offices in Singapore, Geneva and Luxembourg. It advises a number of its own special purpose vehicles across different business segments in real estate, credit, private equity and special situations. For more information, visit: About Stoneweg Stoneweg is a global alternative investment group headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. Founded in 2015 by a team of seasoned investment professionals, the Group has since grown its platform and capabilities both organically and through strategic acquisitions. Stoneweg is a trusted partner to, and investment manager on behalf of, a wide range of global and local investors, capital allocators and finance a range of tailored solutions, including club deals, joint ventures and co-investments, it has a strong investment track record across a range of strategies, both private and listed, and asset classes. For more information, visit: Logo - View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE SWI Group Sign in to access your portfolio
