Press Trust of India ( )
Nexus Select Trust, which is sponsored by global investment firm Blackstone, plans to raise up to Rs 3,200 crore from India’s first retail REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) public offer. The total size of the public issue (Rs 3,200 crore) includes fresh issue of units up to Rs 1,400 crore and an offer for sale of up to Rs 1,800 crore.
This will be the third REIT sponsored by Blackstone.
Earlier, the company had planned to raise up to Rs 4,000 crore from its proposed Initial Public Offer (IPO). The company has filed its offer document with market regulator SEBI, and the issue will hit the market in the second week of May.
In November last year, Nexus Select Trust filed the Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) with SEBI to launch its retail REIT public issue. Nexus Select Trust has a portfolio of 17 operational shopping malls across 14 major cities, covering a 9.8 million square feet area.
It launched India’s first REIT Embassy Office Parks and then Mindspace Business Parks REIT. REIT, a popular instrument globally, was introduced in India a few years ago to attract investment in the real estate sector by monetising rent-yielding assets. It helps unlock the massive value of real estate assets and enables the participation of retail investors.
At present, there are three listed REITs—Embassy Office Parks REIT, Mindspace Business Parks REIT, and Brookfield India Real Estate Trust—on Indian stock exchanges, but all of these are leased office assets.
Nexus Select Trust will be the first REIT with rent-yielding retail real estate assets.
Nexus Select Trust’s portfolio of 9.8 million square feet of retail real estate also includes Select Citywalk Mall in New Delhi.
