Charter Hall has hired JPMorgan in its quest to secure control of $8.9 billion worth of office towers within the Investa Property Group platform, according to sources.
The award of the mandate given by the $1.9bn property investor and fund manager coincides with JPMorgan’s recent appointment of veteran Citi real estate banker Simon Ranson to its ranks.
Charter Hall it is among a raft of parties that are currently in the Dataroom for Morgan Stanley’s sell-off of the Investa business, which includes $2.5bn of buildings held on its balance sheet.
Numerous groups are believed to be eyeing the assets, such as Charter Hall’s listed rivals like Dexus Property Group and the GPT Group, and global suitors such as Blackstone, CBRE, Brookfield and LaSalle Investment Management.
Domestic superannuation funds, global pension funds and a suite of sovereign wealth funds were also contenders.
Charter Hall has $12.7bn worth of assets and last month posted a half-year net profit of $39.9m and delivered a 10.6 per cent lift in its operating earnings.
Shares have rallied in the past year from about $4 to close at $5.20 yesterday.
The company has aspirations to grow its funds under management and has strong links with one of Canada’s largest pension fund managers, PSP Investments, which has partnered with the company on property acquisitions previously.
First round bids for Investa are due early next month before the field is narrowed.
Morgan Stanley, which purchased Investa for a bullish $6.6bn in 2007, has invited pitches for the entire Investa business. This includes the ownership and management of some of the most prestigious sky scrapers in the country, including Sydney’s Deutsche Place.
UBS is aiding Morgan Stanley with the sell-off, while Macquarie Capital and Fort Street Advisers is working for the separately-listed Investa Office Fund.
This article first appeared in The Australian Business Review.