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Mumbai: black Stone Inc. to sell stake for up to $400 million Embassy Office Park REITIndia’s largest real estate investment trust, the Indian Stock Exchange through block deals, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund, one of the world’s largest, is likely to pick up at least half of the stake sold to Blackstone, one of the sources said.
Embassy Office Park, India’s first REIT To be listed in 2019, owns and operates a portfolio of over 42 million square feet of office parks and office buildings in cities such as Bengaluru and Mumbai. It is the largest office REIT in Asia by area.
With block deals being planned on Indian exchanges as early as next week, the sale of Blackstone will be around $300-400 million, said the sources, all of whom declined to be named as discussions are private and private. is sensitive.
Spokesmen for Blackstone and the embassy in Bengaluru did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Spokesperson of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIAAbu Dhabi declined to comment.
share in Embassy REIT The Indian rupee on Friday closed at 354.42 in Mumbai, giving it a market capitalization of $4.15 billion.
Blackstone currently holds a 32% stake in the Embassy REIT and the proposed sale by Blackstone at the current market price would represent 7.2% to 9.6% of its stake, according to Reuters calculations.
Block Trade will be the sale of Blackstone’s third stake in Embassy after two such sales in 2020 and 2021, where the private equity group has collectively sold shares worth more than $500 million.
Blackstone has invested more than $11 billion in Indian companies and properties over the years, but has been reducing its interests in Indian REITs over time.
Earlier this year, it sold its entire stake in India’s Mindspace Business Parks REIT for $235 million.
Sources said the price of the block deals is likely to be finalized early next week, before the block trade is executed. The final nature of block deals and asset sales is subject to change.
ADIA interest
The first source said that ADIA is likely to take around $200 million in Blackstone stake sale, with other potential investors also in talks.
For ADIA, the investment will increase its interest in the Indian office market. As the COVID-19 pandemic subsides, many employees have returned to offices, making office space an attractive bet for investors.
Two sources said ADIA plans to buy a stake in Embassy REIT through a $590 million fund set up in June with Kotak Investment Advisors of India in commercial real estate.
In June, ADIA said the fund would focus “on opportunities linked to long-term demand for Indian office space, driven by global organizations seeking to capitalize on the country’s skilled workforce.”
Three sources said the embassy has appointed Morgan Stanley and Bank of America Securities to drive the process.
“Banks are doing thorough marketing to ensure that the book is well covered,” said a third source with direct knowledge.
Bank of America declined to comment, while Kotak and Morgan Stanley did not immediately respond.
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