A consortium of offshore listed investors is seeking to trump 360 Capital with a rival offer for Australian Industrial REIT (ANI).
Fife Capital Funds, the responsible entity for ANI, revealed today it had received an indicative, non-binding cash proposal at $2.40 a share from a "credible consortia of offshore listed investors".
The consortia is said to have an aggregate market capitalisation in excess of $3 billion.
"The proposal is incomplete and subject to a number of conditions and there is no guarantee that any transaction will ultimately be put to ANI unitholders," the target said in a statement.
ANI shares rallied 2.7 per cent to close at $2.32 in a wider market down 2 per cent.
The proposal cannot be implement before September 28 regardless, which is the scheduled closing date of the existing offer from 360 Capital Investment Management.
ANI said its Independent Board Committee considered the new proposal to be superior to the 360 offer and reiterated a recommendation to unitholders that they reject the 360 offer.
The IBC said there was "sufficient merit" to warrant further engagement with the consortia, which will be given access to information to enable a proposal to be progressed.
Before a formal offer is made, the suitor said conditions that need to be met include satisfactory completion of due diligence, confirmation of the availability of debt funding and confirmation from ANI’s lenders that existing loan facilities can be relied upon following a change of control.
A formal binding offer would depend on conditions including regulatory approval and a minimum acceptance of at least 50.1 per cent of ANI unitholders.