Ascendas Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) has expanded its UK logistics assets with the acquisition of a portfolio of 26 UK properties for £257.5m (€289.5m) from Griffen Group UK.
Ascendas Funds Management, the Singapore-based manager, is undertaking the proposed acquisition for its flagship logistics vehicle, Ascendas Reit.
As part of the acquisition, Ascendas Reit (Europe), as trustee of Ascendas Reit, has entered into a sale and purchase agreement with Griffen to acquire issued share capital of Griffin UK Logistics Fund and its nine subsidiaries, which own the logistics portfolio.
William Tay, Ascendas Funds Management’s executive director and chief executive officer, said the acquisition fits strategically with Ascendas Reit’s current UK portfolio.
“The additional 26 logistics properties will increase our presence in the West Midlands, which is an important logistics hub supported by large population nodes such as Birmingham, Coventry and Leicester,” he said.
The transaction is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2018.
In July this year, Ascendas Reit moved into the UK logistics market with the acquisition of a £207m portfolio of assets from Oxenwood Real Estate.
The latest deal will bring the portfolio of Ascendas REIT to 98 properties in Singapore, 35 in Australia and 38 in the UK. The UK properties will make up 8% of Ascendas REIT’s total portfolio asset value, up from 4%.
