A new name has emerged as a potential contender to buy the $2.26 billion Australand business: Pacific Alliance Group out of Hong Kong.
Listed real estate trust Mirvac Group has continuously been named among the suitors for the $2.26bn target, along with Stockland and the GPT Group, which tried unsuccessfully to buy the bulk of the property business almost a year ago.
But PAG is now thought to be looking at a takeover of the entire listed business, sources have suggested.
It comes with suggestions Mirvac Group could also be looking at calling on US pension fund TIAA-CREF to make a play for Morgan Stanley's $1.9bn listed Investa Office Fund in a deal similar to the recent $3bn takeover by Dexus and the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board of the Commonwealth Property Office Fund (CPA).
TIAA-Cref has $US441bn of assets under management and is known to be close to Mirvac, but Mirvac has denied any play for IOF was afoot. The GPT Group has previously been tipped as a potential candidate to buy IOF and a bid from it for the business still hasn't been ruled out, given that it missed out on CPA to Dexus.
PAG's real estate arm has at least $US9bn of property across Asia under its control, and 100 staff. In the past it has been a strong contender to buy more than $1bn of distressed Australian commercial property debt on offer by British bank Lloyds.
Australian Broderick Storie, who began his real estate investment banking career in Australia with roles at Gresham and as head of real estate at the former investment bank Babcock & Brown, is a partner at PAG.
PAG would not comment on the rumours.
On the IOF front, it is thought Macquarie could play a part as a defence adviser for IOF, while any bid launched by Mirvac would likely happen through Citi.