Blackstone has paid a record CNY300bn (€2.5bn) to buy back a multifamily portfolio in Japan – three years after selling the portfolio to the Chinese insurer Anbang Group.
The portfolio consists of more than 200 apartment buildings, mostly 10-storey blocks, leased to young professionals in Osaka and Tokyo.
At the height of a global spending spree, Anbang in January 2017 acquired the portfolio from Blackstone for US$2.3bn (€2.1bn).
The latest transaction was done at US$2.8bn – less than the US$3bn expected sale price.
While Blackstone signed off on the deal last week, regulatory approvals are still required to finalise the transaction.
Blackstone is in the midst of deploying the US$7.1bn raised for its Blackstone Asia Real Estate Fund II, after its final close in 2018.
Market sources earlier told IPE Real Assets they would not be surprised to see Blackstone buy back into the sector after it last year sold a portfolio in Japan to Allianz Real Estate for US$1.2bn – the largest portfolio sold in Japan in 2019.
“As the vintage of those funds matures, they have to sell – as with the sale of the portfolio to Allianz,” said a property consultant.
According to sources, at least one other global manager is about to sign off on its multifamily transaction in coming days.
