Embassy REIT has agreed to purchase Embassy TechVillage assets (ETV) from affiliates of Embassy sponsor, Blackstone sponsor and other selling shareholders for a total consideration of Rs 97,824 million ($ 1.3 billion), subject to unitholder and regulatory approvals. The acquisition comprises 6.1 million sq ft of completed area, 3.1 million sq ft of under-construction area, of which 36 percent is pre-leased to JP Morgan, and two proposed 518-keys Hilton hotels within the overall ETV campus. Embassy REIT is exercising its right under the ROFO agreement to acquire the asset.
ETV is a unique large scale business park, in the Outer Ring Road sub-market of Bengaluru, Karnataka with a diversified blue-chip and predominantly multinational occupier base, including JP Morgan, Cisco, Sony and Flipkart. The acquisition further deepens the company’s presence in Bengaluru and significantly enhances its scale and ability to deliver embedded growth. The company has purchased the asset of ETV at a 4.6 percent discount to the average of the two independent valuations. The REIT proposes to fund this Rs 98 billion ($ 1.3 billion) acquisition by issuing equity of Rs 60 billion ($ 812 million) through a combination of an institutional placement of Rs 37 billion ($ 500 million), and by way of a preferential issue of units to third-party selling shareholders of Rs 23 billion ($ 312 million). The proposed placement of units is expected to increase the REIT’s public float, enhance its liquidity, and serve as a catalyst for the REIT’s potential inclusion into additional benchmark global equity indices.