RMB 2.48B worth of Nanjing IFC
Real estate services firm Jones Lang LaSalle (NYSE: JLL), announced today that its client – ARA Asia Dragon Fund – had concluded the en-bloc sale of Nanjing International Finance Center to SanPower Group for a total transaction value of RMB 2.48 billion.
The sale by the ARA Asia fund, which is controlled by Li Ka-shing’s Cheung Kong Holdings, was first announced in early January, and the transaction is the largest en-bloc deal ever for a stabilized commercial asset in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region outside of Shanghai.
ARA Asia Dragon Fund is a pan-Asian opportunistic fund managed by Singapore-listed ARA Asset Management Limited. The fund acquired the then newly completed Nanjing IFC from China Merchants Property Development in December 2008,while it was still vacant for RMB 1.6 billion. SanPower Group is said to be one of the largest private enterprises in Jiangsu province.
Lease It Out and Sell It Off
The 51-storey mixed-use property is located in the core area of Nanjing’s Xinjiekou business district, and has a GFA of 109,000 sqm, including 72,686 sqm of office, and 27,503.9 sqm of retail space.
According to a statement from Jones Lang, the Nanjing IFC’s current office occupancy rate exceeds 98%, and the retail portion is also fully occupied.
Li Family Selling Out of China
The Nanjing transaction marked the fourth time that Li Ka-shing, who is estimated by Forbes to be Asia’s richest man, had sold off mainland real estate assets since August. In total Li’s asset disposals are said to have brought in RMB 12.6 billion for his companies.
In October last year China’s Bank of Communications agreed to purchase the Oriental Financial Center in Shanghai’s Pudong district from Li’s Hutchison Whampoa and Cheung Kong Holdings for a total consideration of US$1.15 billion.
Also, during January, Li’s son Richard agreed to sell a Beijing mixed-use development for US$900 million.
Leave a Reply