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SCMP Reporter

ALLIED Properties has acquired nine adjacent sites in Wan Chai for $570 million for a large retail and office redevelopment.

  Separately AG Capital Holding, another member of the Allied group, has completed a $42 million takeover of the entire operations of Japan Finance (International), a licensed money-lender operating in Hong Kong for the past two years.

  The nine Wan Chai sites on Jaffe Road and Lockhart Road were acquired from separate owners through an Allied Properties subsidiary, Jaffe Development.

  A 122,000 sq ft tower will be developed on the site.

  The development is planned for completion by the third quarter of 1995 when much of the new office space now flooding Wan Chai should be taken up.

  Allied director Patrick Lee said: ''This is a rare opportunity. We believe Wan Chai will continue to attract business for some time to come.

  ''Our existing joint ventures in the area - the Allied Kajima Building and Century Hotel - have exceeded our expectations and we know that the market interest remains high.''   The new building will include a four-storey retail podium beneath an office tower.

  It marks Allied's first new development in Hong Kong for some time.

   The company's other recent projects have been in cheaper overseas markets.

 Allied Properties chairman Brian O'Connor said: ''We have said for some time that we would make further investments in Hong Kong when the time and the project were right.

  ''The APL team has carefully selected this opportunity, which meets our agreed criteria and is another indication of the Allied group of companies' confidence in Hong Kong and the future.''   The $42 million paid for Japan Finance by AG Capital was based on net asset value plus 12 per cent of the loan book.

  About 90 per cent was paid yesterday and the remaining 10 per cent will be retained for six months as provision for bad and doubtful debts.

  Japan Finance would now be known as United Asia Finance (UAF) and represented the Allied Group's initial venture into the financial services sector, said Mr O'Connor.

  He said: ''We believe in the viability and profitability of the consumer-finance business and expect UAF will significantly contribute to the group's recurrent income base over the years to come.''   Mr O'Connor said the Allied Group would be injecting further funds into UAF to expand current operations and to realise its future plans, which included trade finance and other financial services.



Allied buys $570m sites in Wan Chai for tower