FINANCE: Capital & Regional plans to become the UK’s newest REIT after taking control of the £684.7m Mall Fund.
The specialist retail company is positioning itself as the UK’s dominant community shopping centre owner with the £213m purchase of a further 62.6% stake in the vehicle.
It has agreed to buy Aviva’s 52% stake and Karoo’s 10.5% share, taking its ownership of the fund, which owns six UK shopping centres including The Mall Blackburn, to 91.8%.
The deal, which reflects a 6.7% net initial yield, will be funded by available cash and a share offer to raise gross proceeds of circa £165m.
It plans to issue 351m shares at 47p a share, although completion of the transaction and capital raising is subject to shareholder approval at a meeting on 9 July.
The group will pay 34.9p for each unit in the Mall Fund – equal to its 31 March 2014 net asset value – adjusted for interest rate swap liabilities and estimated performance fees at that date.
bridget.o’connell@estatesgazette.com
