Signa, a European investment and industrial holding company, completed an acquisition of the Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof, a department store chain, and all shares acquisition of the jointly owned European real estate portfolio from Hudson's Bay, a Canadian retail business group, for $1.5bn. “This is good news for our company. Almost seven months after the merger of the two department store chains, we can continue the restructuring and integration process – which is demanding and challenging for all employees – with a high degree of reliability on the owners’ side. The decision paths are shorter, simplified – and that is important and as it should be.” Stephan Fanderl, SIGNA Retail Managing Director and Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof CEO.