Frasers Centrepoint Trust—a REIT controlled by Thai beer-to-property billionaire Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi’s Frasers Property—is taking full ownership of the Northpoint City shopping complex in the northern Singapore town of Yishun by buying part of the mall for S$1.2 billion ($896 million) from its parent.
Under the deal, the Singapore-listed REIT will buy the south wing of Northpoint City from companies linked to Charoen, according to a statement late Monday.
“With the acquisition, Frasers Centrepoint will have 100% ownership of both north wing and south wing that together form Northpoint City,” Richard Ng, CEO of the Frasers Centrepoint Asset Management said in the statement. “With full control, Frasers Centrepoint will be able to implement holistic asset enhancement initiatives and tenant mix strategies to unlock further value across both wings.”
With net lettable space of over 531,000 square feet, Northpoint City is the largest shopping mall in northern Singapore and is part of an integrated mixed use property comprising the 920-unit North Park Residences on top of the retail podium that’s linked to Yishun transport hub.
Frasers Centrepoint will fund the acquisition by raising up to S$600 million through a share sale as well as debt financing. The funding structure will be finalized at the appropriate time, taking into consideration factors such as market conditions and the REIT’s aggregate leverage, it added.
Charoen has an estimated net worth of $11.5 billion according to Forbes’ real-time data. Besides his controlling stake in Frasers Property, he also has interests in Chang Beer maker Thai Beverages as well as hotel developer Asset World.
Read the full article here