Rajah  & Tann, Paul Hastings, Allen & Gledhill and Linklaters have all played a role in advising Mapletree Investment’s first Hong Kong commercial acquisition. The US$2.4bn purchase of Festival Walk mall from Hong Kong real estate firm Swire Properties will be a seed asset for a portfolio of properties slated to grow over the next two to three years.

Lead counsel for borrowers Rajah & Tann, led by Singapore-based banking and finance partner Angela Lim, advised on the bridging facility and subsequent refinancing of the acquisition by Mapletree.

Paul Hastings Partner Vivian Lam led the firm’s team advising Mapletree while Linklaters advised a syndicate of seven banks, both as Hong Kong counsels.

Allen & Gledhill advised the financiers as Singapore counsel.

Swire Properties retained Mayer Brown JSM as seller’s counsel.

The sale and purchase agreement with Swire Properties to acquire Festival Walk – a major regional retail mall – is a key asset in Hong Kong's retail sector, which Mapletree plans to build under a Hong Kong focused fund over the next two to three years.

Mapletree Investments, a group that is wholly owned by Temasek, seeks to create a platform for more investment in the territory.“This acquisition is a milestone as we have secured a good sized and high quality asset in our first retail project in Hong Kong,” Mapletree chief executive Hiew Yoon Khong said. “What is especially attractive about this asset is that the rental income has increased consistently year-on-year since inception. We are very confident that this trend will continue in future.”

According to Hiew, the group will identify asset enhancement opportunities to further increase the value of the Festival Walk acquisition, in addition to building Mapletree’s breadth and depth of retail skills in the Hong Kong market.

"Festival Walk presents Mapletree and its capital partners a significant and impactful entry into the retail property scene in Hong Kong,” Hiew said.

Mapletree entered Hong Kong six years earlier through its logistics real estate business. The group is looking to expand its footprint in the city via retail properties. “This acquisition reinforces our strategy to scale up in Key markets in Asia. With this latest purchase, Mapletree’s total asset under management will grow a further 19.5 percent to US$14.75bn, of which 41 percent of it is constituted by overseas assets, Hiew said.ALB