The Matrix Group is planning to list its £300 mln European portfolio on the London stock exchange in May 2007. The Guernsey-registered open-ended fund aims to raise about £150 mln by selling shares prior to the listing. Its investment unit Matrix European Real Estate Investment Trust (MEREIT) is expected to have a market cap of £230 mln.
The Matrix Group is planning to list its £300 mln European portfolio on the London stock exchange in May 2007. The Guernsey-registered open-ended fund aims to raise about £150 mln by selling shares prior to the listing. Its investment unit Matrix European Real Estate Investment Trust (MEREIT) is expected to have a market cap of £230 mln.
The fund owns 27 properties, mostly in France, Germany and the Netherlands, worth about £330 mln. It is about to acquire £35 mln of properties in Spain. The proceeds will be used to finance an investment in an opportunistic joint venture with Matrix Property Fund Management and Bank of Scotland Corporate, as well as reduce existing debt and acquire a stake in the IZD Tower in Vienna, Austria’s largest office building. Matrix acquired the IZD Tower from buyout firm Doughty Hanson & Co. in October for EUR 247 mln.
Managing director of Matrix Property Fund Management, Rob Randall, said: 'The European property market offers higher yields compared to those in the UK and the benefit of additional geographic diversity.'
