Valad Europe's management buyout falls through

Sydney-listed real estate group Valad Property Group announced on Monday that the proposed sale of its European business has fallen through. The deal was said to be worth EUR 30 mln.

Valad, which in December last year received a management buyout (MBO) proposal for its European business from a consortium including its European boss, Martyn McCarthy, and managing director Peter Hurley, said that the MBO proposal has been withdrawn following a period of discussions with the European arm's senior managers.

Valad added that it has received a number of approaches in relation to the European business, and 'will continue to explore the approaches from third parties and make a decision in relation to the future ownership of the European business based on the merits of the proposals'.

'Valad's intention is to retain the business should none of these proposals be in the best interest of securityholders,' it said.

The company is also holding discussions with its managing director, Peter Hurley, in relation to his future arrangements with Valad. Given Hurley's interest in the MBO, he had agreed to take a leave of absence from the managing director role, and all duties that the board considered would involve a conflict of interest.