Cbus Property, the property arm of Cbus Super, is set to buy the remaining retail malls in Lendlease’s A$2.4bn (€1.4bn) shopping centre fund for an undisclosed amount.
The move will allow Australia Prime Property Fund (APPF) – Retail to pay out its 40 plus institutional investors who have sought redemption from the fund. Lendlease has a 10.5% stake in the fund, which still owns four shopping malls across the country.
APPF Retail delivered a 12.6% return for the past 12 months.
In December, the fund sold the Erina Shopping Centre in New South Wales, co-owned with Korea’s National Pension Scheme, to Fawkner Property for A$895m.
Vanessa Orth, managing director, Lendlease Investment Management, said: “APPF Retail assessed a range of options to return liquidity to its unit holders. Following careful consideration by the Independent Board Committee, the fund has entered an exclusive due diligence period with an undisclosed party to acquire all the units in the fund.”
Cbus Property has a portfolio of office buildings and other assets, valued at A$7.8bn at the end of December. Its main exposure to retail is a 50% stake in Pacific Fair on the Gold Coast in Queensland acquired in 2021, through its investment in the Australian Core Retail Trust.
