Gaw Capital Partners has led a consortium including QuadReal Property Group to buy the Ocean Towers office building in Shanghai from an ARA Asset Management fund.
The sale price was not disclosed, but IPE Real Assets understands that it is around RMB3bn (€380m).
Together, with a Beijing mixed use complex sold this week to Link REIT for RMB2.56bn, Singapore-based ARA has sold the last two assets in its USD441m (€387.9m) ARA Dragon Fund 11.
Humbert Pang, managing principal and head of China for Gaw Capital Partners said: “Gaw Capital and our partners are confident about Shanghai’s property market, which has continued on an upward trajectory despite the uncertain external economic environment.“
He pointed to the Shanghai’s economic development which has surpassed all other cities in China with 6.9% growth in GDP.
He added, “We hope to leverage our experience in redesign and re-positioning to enhance asset value and attract new tenants. In addition, we will reposition and upgrade the tenant mix to add significant, strategic value to the Grade A building.”
Ng Beng Tiong, the CEO of ARA private funds, told IPE Real Assets that “The transactions are testament to our strengths as an investor-operator with complete investment life cycle expertise.”
“From deal sourcing and acquisition, to asset management and divestment, we added value to every stage of the life cycle,” he said.
The ARA fund acquired Ocean Towers, located at 550 East Yan’An Road, from another Singaporean investor, Ascendas-Singbridge, in 2013 for RMB1.9bn.
“These are the final two assets under ADF II, launched in 2012 and mark the successful close of the fund,” added Ng, who is also assistant group CEO of ARA Asset Management.
