Asia-Pacific Newsweek
Suntec City REIT's Suntec City is an integrated office, retail and convention center in Singapore.
Property tycoon Gordon Tang and his wife Celine have offered to acquire a stake in Suntec REIT, which owns a number of prime commercial properties in and around Singapore's Marina Bay financial district, in a deal that values the landlord at more than S$3.4 billion (US$2.5 billion) ) billion).
Through their investment vehicle Aelios, the couple purchased an additional 62.5 million Suntec REIT shares at S$1.16 on Thursday, raising their stake in the company to 31.5%, above what would trigger a compulsory takeover under Singapore's listing rules The 30 threshold.
While Aelios made a mandatory offer to acquire the remainder of Suntec REIT at S$1.16, the company said it intends to retain Suntec REIT's listed status. The stock rose 2.6% to S$1.20 in early trading in Singapore.
Singapore-listed Suntec REIT is one of the country's largest office and commercial landlords and counts property billionaire John Lim among its shareholders. As well as its crown jewel – Suntec City, an office tower, retail and convention center on the edge of the central business district, it also has stakes in the nearby Marina Bay Financial Center and One Raffles Quay. The company also has real estate interests in Australia and the United Kingdom
In recent years, the Tang family has continued to increase its investment in Singapore real estate. In 2022, Chip Eng Seng and a joint venture of SingHaiyi Group and Harbor Plaza Holdings controlled by the couple bought a 21% stake in the former Temasek Tower on the edge of the Raffles Place central business district. A 63-storey skyscraper that will be Singapore's tallest when completed in 2028 is currently being built on the property by Tang-backed companies and partners, including e-commerce giant Alibaba and Perennial Holdings ).
