FCT Buys Northpoint City South Wing for $896 Million

The manager of Frasers Centrepoint Trust (FCT) has announced that it will acquire Northpoint City South Wing in Yishun in Singapore for $896 million. The acquisition will make FCT the largest suburban retail landlord with a 10.3% market share.

FCT inked agreements with FCL Amber and Bright Bloom Capital to acquire the south wing of Northpoint City for $896 million. It will be done via the purchase of North Gem Trust (NG Trust), a private trust that holds the interests in the target property.

FCL Amber and Bright Bloom are the 50:50 owners of NG Trust. FCL Amber is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Frasers Property. Bright Bloom is a unit of TCC Prosperity, owned equally by Mr Sirivadhanabhakdi and the estate of his late wife Khunying Wanna Sirivadhanabhakdi.

FCT Manager Richard Ng said that with the acquisition, FCT will have 100% ownership of both North Wing and South Wing that together form Northpoint City. With full control, FCT will be able to implement holistic asset enhancement initiatives (AEIs) and tenant mix strategies to unlock further value across both wings.

FCT will have full ownership of Northpoint City. With full control, FCT will be able to implement holistic asset enhancement initiatives and tenant mix strategies to unlock further value across both wings, he noted.

“The acquisition also consolidates FCT’s position as Singapore’s leading prime suburban retail space owner and enables FCT to deliver regular and stable distributions to its unit holders,” Richard Ng added.

Biggest Mall

Northpoint City is the largest mall in north Singapore and is linked to Yishun Integrated Transport Hub and has a 100 per cent committed occupancy.

The acquisition cost comprises $280.54 million for the acquisition price and about $586.94 million of bank loans owed by NG Trust. It also includes about $8.45 million in acquisition fees payable to the manager, as well as other acquisition-related fees and expenses of about $1.05 million.

The manager intends to finance the acquisition by utilising the net proceeds from an issuance of new equity via a fund-raising launched on Tuesday. This comprises a private placement offering to raise gross proceeds of no less than approximately $149.54 million and a preferential offering to raise gross proceeds to an additional $149.54 million.

The property, which was opened in December 2017, is spread over 301,579 sq. ft. of net leasable area (NLA) over a two-storey retail complex and two basement levels.

The Northpoint City south wing, together with Northpoint City North Wing, forms Northpoint City which is the largest mall in northern Singapore with a combined NLA of over 531,000 sq. ft. It is part of an integrated mixed-use development comprising a 920-unit condominium known as North Park Residences which is above the retail podium.

Served by major arterial roads such as Yishun Avenue 2 and Yishun Central, the Property is also easily accessible via the Tampines Expressway, the Central Expressway and the Bukit Timah Expressway.