Wanda chairman Wang Jianlin has another debt negotiation weighing on his mind (Getty Images)
In today’s roundup of regional real estate headlines, debt-saddled conglomerate Dalian Wanda is attempting to extend a maturing debt facility, and flexible office giant WeWork loses another C-level executive. Also in the news, Singapore’s Keppel Group buys into a Vietnam residential project and a Mirae US real estate fund loses most of its investors’ cash.
Wanda in Talks to Refinance $275M Private Debt Facility
Chinese conglomerate Dalian Wanda is in discussions with lenders to refinance a $275 million private debt facility that matures in June, according to people familiar with the matter.
Credit Suisse, the facility’s arranger, has been organising calls with lenders for at least a month about refinancing the deal, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private matters. They added that the facility is backed by Wanda’s equity in Hollywood filmmaker Legendary Entertainment. Read more>>
Keppel Corp Teams with Vietnam Fund to Invest in HCMC Residential Project
Keppel Corporation, together with Keppel Vietnam Fund, have entered into binding agreements to acquire a 49 percent interest in two adjacent residential projects in Ho Chi Minh City’s Thu Duc area for VND 3,180 billion ($135 million).
The Keppel consortium is buying its stake from local developer Khang Dien Group which continues to hold the remaining equity in the venture. The partners plan to jointly develop a total of more than 200 landed homes and more than 600 high-rise apartments on the two sites, which have a total land area of about 11.8 hectares (29 acres). Read more>>
Mirae US Real Estate Fund Posts -70% Return
A private fund for US real estate managed by South Korea’s Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. has seen huge losses amid the tumble of the office market, investment banking sources said on Friday. The fund, Mirae Asset Maps Frontier US Private Real Estate Trust No. 5, posted negative 70.2 percent return as of May 26, the date of the fund’s maturity, according to Mirae Asset’s disclosure.
Among the investors are a unit of Jones Lang LaSalle IP Inc., Shinhan Life Insurance Co. and Korea Scientists & Engineers Mutual Aid Association (SEMA), according to sources. Mirae Asset Global created the fund in 2015 and, as the vehicle saw losses amid a downturn in the office market, it extended the fund’s maturity in 2020 and 2022. Read more>>
WeWork CFO Follows CEO Out the Door
WeWork CFO Andre Fernandez is resigning effective 1 June after just six months in the role, he informed the New York-based coworking space provider on Tuesday.
Kurt Wehner, current chief accounting officer, will take over the financial helm as Fernandez’s replacement, also effective 1 June. Fernandez’s swift exit follows the departure of his former C-suite colleague Sandeep Mathrani, who notified WeWork on 10 May that he would be resigning from his position as CEO. Read more>>
Hines Says Timber-Built Melbourne Office Tower to Cut Emissions by 34%
US builder Hines announced Thursday that the firm’s flagship T3 Collingwood development, the first Hines timber building in Asia Pacific, will reduce carbon emissions by 34 percent versus standard concrete and steel construction.
Located at 36 Wellington Street in Melbourne, the 18,200 square metre (195,903 square foot), 15-storey heavy timber office building is scheduled to be completed in 2024. Read more>>
Bankrupt HNA Ordered to Turn Over Chicago Tower to SL Green
The Chinese conglomerate that owns the 50-storey office tower at 181 West Madison Street in Chicago’s Loop must hand over the property to SL Green, New York’s largest office landlord, a federal judge ordered last week.
In a ruling meant to help resolve an unpaid $185 million judgement against HNA International as the China-based firm works through bankruptcy, Judge John Koeltl ordered HNA to turn over its interest in the Chicago property to a venture led by New York-based SL Green, Crain’s Chicago Business reported. Read more>>
Spring REIT Announces $19M Buyback of Issued Units
The manager of Hong Kong-listed Spring REIT said Thursday that it intends to repurchase 4.23 percent of the trust’s total number of issued units beneficially owned by BT Cayman Ltd.
The buyback constitutes an off-market transaction and offers an opportunity to buy back the units of Spring REIT at a price of HK$2.3810 per unit, which is accretive to the distribution per unit and net asset value per unit of Spring REIT, the manager said. The total consideration for the buyback is HK$150.6 million ($19.2 million). Read more>>
Asia-Focused HSBC Puts 12 Countries on Exit Watchlist
HSBC is reviewing a possible exit from as many as one in five of the countries the lender operates in to sharpen its focus on Asian expansion, chief financial officer Georges Elhedery told Reuters in his first interview since taking the role.
These reviews, which could see the British bank deciding to sell or streamline businesses in 12 countries, follow pressure from Chinese shareholder Ping An Insurance, which wants HSBC to prioritise growth in its money-spinning Asian business, which generates 78 percent of group profit. Read more>>
How Bengaluru Is Becoming the High-Street Shopping Capital of India
Bengaluru not only occupies the top slot when it comes to high-street shopping destinations in India, the start-up capital also dominates the list with MG Road, Commercial Street, Brigade Road and Church Street making it to Knight Frank India’s annual top 10 retail streets in India.
While MG Road is on top, Somajiguda in Hyderabad, Linking Road in Mumbai and South Extension in Delhi occupy the next three spots, respectively, per the study — of 30 high streets across the top eight markets in India — conducted by the global real estate consultancy. Read more>>
Tune in again soon for more real estate news and be sure to follow @Mingtiandi on Twitter, or bookmark Mingtiandi’s LinkedIn page for headlines as they happen.
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