Shvo, BVK, Deutsche Finance Poised To Sell Transamerica Pyramid
The Transamerica Pyramid, a standout on San Francisco's skyline that developer Michael Shvo renovated into a trophy office tower commanding market-topping rents, is in line to be sold.
Shvo and his investors, German pension fund Bayerische Versorgungskammer and Deutsche Finance America, are planning to sell the property for an undisclosed sum to Yoda PLC, an investment firm listed on the Cyprus Stock Exchange, The Real Deal reported, citing anonymous sources.
Shvo didn't directly confirm the pending sale or reported buyer when reached for comment Tuesday but referenced a transfer of management in an emailed statement to Bisnow.
“The Transamerica Pyramid has long symbolized the city’s ambition and resilience,” Shvo said. “We are proud to have strengthened that legacy — physically, financially, and culturally — and I am confident it will continue to define the skyline and serve generations to come under its next custodian.”
Shvo signed new tenants to the tower, including hedge funds Tiger Global Management, Coatue Management and Mizuho Financial Group, bringing the property to 85% leased. The New York-based developer said some tenants paid about $300 per SF for their space in the pyramid, a West Coast record.
But one of those tenants, the members-only Core Club, sued Shvo in 2024, alleging broken promises and substandard construction related to its space in the Transamerica Pyramid and at 711 Fifth Ave. in New York City.
Shvo and DFA, which manages investments for BVK and other German pension funds, purchased the tower for $650M in 2020 and poured another $400M into renovations, including updating the lobby and adding a cocktail lounge for use exclusively by the building’s tenants.
But the relationship soured in 2025 after losses piled up on the $1.9B in seven investments BVK made with DFA and Shvo.
BVK, Germany’s largest pension fund, sought to cut ties with Shvo and DFA last month, although Shvo asserted that apart from market fluctuations related to interest rate changes, the investments were performing well.
Last fall, Shvo sold two properties in Miami Beach, including the stalled site of the proposed $2B redevelopment of the historic Raleigh, for $270M. Another Miami development site he bought sold in a deed-in-lieu-of-foreclosure deal for $28.2M, and Shvo sold 44 unsold units at the Mandarin Oriental Residences Beverly Hills in 2024 after the lender on a $200M loan filed a notice of default.
BVK has already written off €163M, or roughly $191M, of its €1.6B initial investment in DFA and Shvo, and it told pensioners in December that it could lose another €690M, or more than $1B in total, on the deals. Its investment in Shvo amounted to 1.4% of its book in 2024, and it said payouts to its beneficiaries won't be affected.
