SINGAPORE/BENGALURU (Reuters) – Blackstone Group LP is buying U.S. industrial warehouse properties from Singapore-based logistics provider GLP for $18.7 billion, in what the companies billed as the largest private real estate transaction globally.
The deal by the world’s largest manager of alternative assets comes when investors are spending billions of dollars to snap up logistics assets as a surge in e-commerce activity spurs demand for delivery and warehouse services.
Blackstone said on Sunday the overall transaction totaled 179 million square feet of urban logistics assets, nearly doubling the size of its U.S. industrial footprint.
“Logistics is our highest conviction global investment theme today, and we look forward to building on our existing portfolio to meet the growing e-commerce demand,” said Ken Caplan, global co-head of Blackstone Real Estate.
Including the latest deal, Blackstone said it had acquired over 930 million square feet of logistics assets globally since 2010. Two years ago, Blackstone-managed real estate funds sold its pan-European logistics company, Logicor, to affiliates of China Investment Corp for 12.25 billion euros ($13.7 billion).
Stephanie Lau, senior analyst at Moody’s said GLP’s assets were likely in locations where supply was constrained, so that could make them more attractive, while high occupancy rates was another positive.
GLP’s clients include Amazon.com Inc, Walmart, Adidas AG and L’Oreal SA.
GLP has a portfolio of 1,350 properties in the United States across 36 markets and serves more than 3,000 customers. It scaled up its U.S. business over the past four years, making it the second-largest after Prologis Inc.
Financing activity in the logistics sector is picking up in Asia.
Asian logistics property developer ESR Cayman Ltd, a company backed by private equity firm Warburg Pincus, could launch a Hong Kong IPO of up to $1.4 billion this week, two people told Reuters. The deal was due to launch on Monday.
Two years ago, GLP was acquired by a leading Chinese buyout consortium and senior executives from GLP for S$16 billion ($11.67 billion).
GLP is a global investment manager with $64 billion of assets under management in real estate and private equity funds. Its real estate fund platform is one of the largest in the world, spanning 785 million square feet.
As part of the $18.7 billion enterprise value of the latest deal, Blackstone agreed to acquire assets from three of GLP’s U.S. funds.
Eastdil Secured LLC, Citigroup Global Markets Inc and Goldman Sachs & Co LLC were financial advisers to GLP on the deal. BofA Merrill Lynch, Barclays, Deutsche Bank, J.P. Morgan and Morgan Stanley & Co LLC were financial advisers to Blackstone. Kirkland & Ellis was legal counsel to GLP and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett was legal counsel to Blackstone.
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Home » Analysis & Comment » Blackstone in record $18.7 billion deal to buy U.S. warehouse assets from GLP
Blackstone in record $18.7 billion deal to buy U.S. warehouse assets from GLP
SINGAPORE/BENGALURU (Reuters) – Blackstone Group LP is buying U.S. industrial warehouse properties from Singapore-based logistics provider GLP for $18.7 billion, in what the companies billed as the largest private real estate transaction globally.
The deal by the world’s largest manager of alternative assets comes when investors are spending billions of dollars to snap up logistics assets as a surge in e-commerce activity spurs demand for delivery and warehouse services.
Blackstone said on Sunday the overall transaction totaled 179 million square feet of urban logistics assets, nearly doubling the size of its U.S. industrial footprint.
“Logistics is our highest conviction global investment theme today, and we look forward to building on our existing portfolio to meet the growing e-commerce demand,” said Ken Caplan, global co-head of Blackstone Real Estate.
Including the latest deal, Blackstone said it had acquired over 930 million square feet of logistics assets globally since 2010. Two years ago, Blackstone-managed real estate funds sold its pan-European logistics company, Logicor, to affiliates of China Investment Corp for 12.25 billion euros ($13.7 billion).
Stephanie Lau, senior analyst at Moody’s said GLP’s assets were likely in locations where supply was constrained, so that could make them more attractive, while high occupancy rates was another positive.
GLP’s clients include Amazon.com Inc, Walmart, Adidas AG and L’Oreal SA.
GLP has a portfolio of 1,350 properties in the United States across 36 markets and serves more than 3,000 customers. It scaled up its U.S. business over the past four years, making it the second-largest after Prologis Inc.
Financing activity in the logistics sector is picking up in Asia.
Asian logistics property developer ESR Cayman Ltd, a company backed by private equity firm Warburg Pincus, could launch a Hong Kong IPO of up to $1.4 billion this week, two people told Reuters. The deal was due to launch on Monday.
Two years ago, GLP was acquired by a leading Chinese buyout consortium and senior executives from GLP for S$16 billion ($11.67 billion).
GLP is a global investment manager with $64 billion of assets under management in real estate and private equity funds. Its real estate fund platform is one of the largest in the world, spanning 785 million square feet.
As part of the $18.7 billion enterprise value of the latest deal, Blackstone agreed to acquire assets from three of GLP’s U.S. funds.
Eastdil Secured LLC, Citigroup Global Markets Inc and Goldman Sachs & Co LLC were financial advisers to GLP on the deal. BofA Merrill Lynch, Barclays, Deutsche Bank, J.P. Morgan and Morgan Stanley & Co LLC were financial advisers to Blackstone. Kirkland & Ellis was legal counsel to GLP and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett was legal counsel to Blackstone.
Source: Read Full Article