GIC cashes out of Iso Omena mall in Finland

Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC has sold the 40% it has held for six years in the Iso Omena shopping centre in Espoo, Finland to joint venture partner Citycon.

The financial retails of the transaction were not disclosed but Helsinki-listed shopping centre specialist Citycon said the price was in line with the current valuation.

GIC had acquired the stake in the shopping centre from Citycon for just under €132 mln in 2008. Citycon had purchased the centre the year before for €329 mln.

Located in Espoo, part of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, Iso Omena was at the time described as Finland's fifth largest modern shopping centre. Its had a total lettable area of 61,300 m2, with planning permission for a further 7,000 m2.

Citycon said in a statement announcing the acquisition of GIC's stake that Iso Omena has shown strong performance since 2008, with net rental income increasing by about 30%, and footfall and sales by about 17%.

Iso Omena is Citycon’s largest shopping centre in Finland and is currently undergoing a major expansion and redevelopment project. The expansion’s first phase is being carried out in a 50-50 partnership with NCC Property Development. Featuring 75,000 m2 of retail area, the expanded Iso Omena will open in late summer 2016 and will be fully integrated with the busy Matinkylä station of the new western metro line.

'We have been very pleased with the joint venture with GIC and want to thank them for their commitment in making Iso Omena one of the best shopping centres in the Helsinki region. As we enter a new development phase, we believe full ownership of the property will provide flexibility in terms of future development possibilities,' said Citycon’s CEO Marcel Kokkeel.

GIC has been quite active in the recent past. Earlier this week, it confirmed the acquisition of the remaining 50% interest in did not already own in the Roma Est Shopping Centre, as tipped by PropertyEU in June.

PropertyEU reported before the summer that GIC was in the process of taking full control of Roma Est - one of Italy's largest shopping centres - for a price of around €200 mln, reflecting a yield of roughly 6.5%.

In the UK, the sovereign wealth fund has sold its full ownership in the Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s London HQ for £582 mln (€740 mln).