S&P Global Market Intelligence offers our top picks of Asia-Pacific real estate news stories and more published throughout the week.
Merger mania
* Australian office landlord Investa Office Fund has found itself the target of another takeover offer, with Blackstone Group LP offering A$3.14 billion for the company, about a year after it rebuffed one from Cromwell Property Group and two years after failing to merge with Dexus.
While it was reported as early as March 2016 that Blackstone was interested in Investa Office, the latter's board said it only received a first confidential proposal from the private equity giant April 5.
A day after the proposal was disclosed, the office fund's sister company and largest shareholder, Investa Commercial Property Fund, said it is in final discussions with an unnamed institutional investor, reported to be Macquarie Capital (Australia) Ltd., for a strategic partnership, a move it claimed is unrelated to the takeover bid.
* This week, two France-based companies completed their respective takeovers of their Australian peers.
Headlining for Australia's largest M&A deal in history, Westfield Corp. and Unibail-Rodamco SE's US$15.68 billion scheme arrangement became effective May 30. The Australian retail landlord giant also ceased trading its shares on the local bourse the same day.
The next day, AccorHotels' A$1.18 billion takeover of Mantra Group Ltd. also became effective. The scheme was implemented May 31, with Mantra to officially exit the Australian bourse when the market closes June 1.
Finding funds
* A Shanghai-based co-living space startup launched two funds: a 10 billion-yuan platform to buy land for rental flat developments and a US$1 billion fund for residential conversions. The developer, Chinese co-living space operator Harbour, is backed by private equity firms Gaw Capital Partners and Trustbridge Partners.
* ESR boosted its total co-investment vehicles for Japanese real estate to US$1.2 billion, thanks to the US$575 million final closing of its Redwood Japan Logistics Fund 2 fund. The pan-Asian developer will target logistics properties in Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya.
* Savills Investment Management Inc. CEO Justin O'Connor said the firm is working on increasing its Asian assets under management to US$5 billion from the current US$2 billion over the next few years. To reach the goal, the London-headquartered global property fund manager will partner with Chinese investors, launch a pan-Asia office-focused fund and set up a Hong Kong office within 2018.
Mainland money
* Dalian Wanda Group Corp. Ltd., Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Gaopeng are forming a 51/42.48/6.52 joint venture to venture into the "smart retail" sector. The partners aim to integrate online and offline businesses, with Dalian Wanda deploying Tencent and Gaopeng's internet and online services at its Wanda Plaza malls.
* Hainan, China-based HNA Group Co. Ltd. is continuing on with its 100 billion-yuan divestment plan around the world. In the U.S., it is believed to have sold its first asset on the West Coast for roughly US$300 million, and in Spain, it is reported to be closing the bidding process this week for its about €657 million stake in NH Hotel Group SA.
On the other hand, HNA is holding on to its last Kai Tak land plot in Hong Kong by reportedly wooing banks to provide refinancing and construction loans amounting to between HK$4 billion and HK$5 billion.
* Chinese investors continued to be Australia's top real estate investor in the year ended June 30, 2017, but with much less gusto than before. Approvals for mainlanders' property investments reached A$15.25 billion in the period, about half of the A$31.91 billion poured into the sector in the year-ago period. Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board identified higher development application fees, stricter lending rules for foreigners and Beijing's outbound capital controls for the decline, among others.
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Celestyn Wong contributed to this report.
As of May 31, US$1 was equivalent to 6.41 yuan.
