French Property Mogul Survives Slump After Deal Almost Sank Him

Alain Taravella recalls how in late 2008, as France’s real-estate market slumped, he began doubting his biggest corporate acquisition. A year earlier, he’d bought apartment and office developer Cogedim from investors led by Italian insurer Vittoria Assicurazioni SpA. He outbid General Electric Co. and billionaires Bernard Arnault and Albert Frere to seal the deal.

Analysts were skeptical of the 650 million-euro ($921 million) purchase; Cogedim didn’t appear to mesh with Taravella’s Altarea SCA, a builder of shopping centers, Bloomberg Markets magazine reports in its September cover package: “Hidden Billionaires.”