Blackstone has joined Lim Chap Huat, chairman of a Singapore family group Soilbuild Group Holdings, in a S$700m (鈧�425m) bid to take private the listed Soilbuild Business Space REIT.
The offer comes from Clay Holdings III, a newly-incorporated entity formed for the purpose of the takeover by an entity owned by Blackstone and Lim, who is co-founder of the Soilbuild Group.
As of 14 December, Lim and his family collectively owned about 30.5% of the real estate firm.
Soilbuild REIT, which first listed on the Singapore stock exchange in 2013, said the bidders proposed to acquire all issued units in the trust at S$0.55 each by way of a trust scheme of arrangement.
Chong Kie Cheong, chairman of Soilbuild REIT鈥檚 manager, said: 鈥淎fter considering the uncertainty of a global recovery and the merits of the proposed trust scheme, we believe it represents a credible offer in the face of challenging market conditions. We would like to present it to unitholders for their consideration.鈥�
In the offeror鈥檚 statement on Monday, Lim said: 鈥淕iven the various challenges and constraints faced by Soilbuild REIT, the group has considered many options and discussed potential transactions, including a privatisation, with parties comprising private equity firms, real estate funds and real estate developers across Hong Kong/China, Australia and the United States over the past few years. We believe this proposal by Blackstone presents the best option for minority unitholders. It represents the highest price offered.鈥�
The offer translates to a 34.5% premium over the volume-weighted average price of Soilbuild shares traded over the past month, and a 29.1% premium over shares traded over the plast year.
Soilbuild REIT said it would dispose to Blackstone its entire issued and paid-up units in a subsidiary company, Soilbuild Trust Australia, which owns three properties in Australia, for A$232m.
The Australian assets include an office building at 14 Mort Street in Canberra, a poultry production and processing facility known as Inghams Burton in Adelaide, and a freehold office building at 25 Grenfell Street in Adelaide.
In Singapore, Soilbuild REIT owns 10 business parks and industrial properties, leased to Dyson Operations, Nestle Singapore and John Wiley & Sons, among others.
