Big mall deal marks Hyprop's maiden Nigeria investment

18 Nov 2015

Retail-focused property group Hyprop Investments and capital growth fund Attacq have bought Ikeja City Mall, the largest shopping centre in Lagos.

Pieter Prinsloo. Image credit: Financial Mail

Hyprop has been looking for a sizeable investment in Nigeria, having found fewer acquisition opportunities available in SA in the past year.

The deal marks an exit from the mall for private equity group Actis, real estate developer RMB Westport and Nigerian investor group, Paragon Holdings. It is Hyprop's maiden investment in Nigeria, with the fund spending roughly $68m for its 75% interest in the mall. Attacq is paying 23m for its 25% stake.

The 22,000m² mall is in Ikeja, a densely populated suburb with a population of 4.5-million. It is anchored by Shoprite and includes South African brands Mr Price, Spur, MTN and Markham, and international brands such as Nike, TM Lewin, Lacoste, Mano, Tommy Hilfiger, i-Store, KFC and Max Fashion.

Actis and local partner Paragon Holdings had sourced the mall's development site in 2008. RMB Westport was appointed by Actis as development manager in that year, and it invested as an equity partner in 2010. Actis has now sold its 60% majority stake, while Paragon Holdings and RMB Westport have sold their 20% stakes in the shopping centre.

Hyprop has also invested in shopping centres in Ghana and Zambia through partnerships with unlisted South African property company Atterbury Group and Attacq.

"Hyprop is well placed to capitalise on opportunities across sub-Saharan Africa, due to its partnership with the Atterbury Group and Attacq, whose combined expertise facilitates exploiting opportunities as they arise," Hyprop CEO Pieter Prinsloo said yesterday.

David Morley, head of real estate at Actis, said the deal showed that West Africa offered strong opportunities for institutional investors.

Source: Business Day

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