The Westfield Group and a joint venture company owned by Multiplex and companies associated with David and Simon Reuben have completed a public offer to acquire Duelguide plc, the company which owns the former listed company Chelsfield plc.
The offer valued Duelguide at approximately £2.2bn (€3.2bn) on a firm value basis. At announcement, approximately 87.4% of Duelguide´s shareholders had irrevocably committed to accept the offer.
Deutsche Bank acted as financial advisor and as lead arranger of a £600m (€870m) acquisition facility to Westfield.
The assets of Duelguide will be allocated among the members of the bidding group. Westfield´s investment will comprise a high-quality retail portfolio (including 100% of the Merry Hill super-regional shopping center in Birmingham) and will provide an additional approximate amount of £1.8bn (€2.6bn) of future development opportunities. westfield´s UK portfolio will increase from seven to nine centers plus four retail development sites to over £2.0bn (€2.9bn).
This transaction is indicative of a global trend towards consolidation in the regional shopping center industry.
Source: DB Real Eestate
