An affiliate of US private equity firm Lone Star Funds has agreed to buy Singapore-listed Saizen Reit’s portfolio in Japan for S$517.3 million. The deal comes amid a pick-up in consolidation in the real estate investment trust sector as many listed property trusts are trading below their net asset value, particularly in Singapore. Saizen consistently traded at a discount to net asset value over the past two years. Net asset value refers to an entity's assets minus the value of its liabilities. The purchase by Triangle TMK, a Japanese affiliate of Lone Star Real Estate Fund IV and Lone Star Funds, implied a net offer price of S$1.172 per unit, a slight premium to Saizen’s adjusted net asset value per unit, Saizen said in a statement. The implied price is nearly 27 per cent above Saizen’s last closing price of 92.5 Singaporean cents a unit on Thursday before its trading was suspended on Friday. Credit Suisse and NorthEast Capital Management GK acted as financial advisers for the deal.
