New York City-based private equity firm Blackstone Group LP and Bangalore-based developer Embassy Property Development Private Limited raised $682.5 million from India’s first public offering of a real estate investment trust (REIT). This REIT’s portfolio comprised 33 million sq. ft. of office space across eleven office parks and buildings, as well as two completed hotels, with two more under construction.
An estimated 158 million units were sold at prices ranging from $4.33 – $4.35 per unit, and the REIT was subscribed 2.58 times higher the number of units available.
Institutional investors subscribed 2.15 times the number of units allocated to them, whereas retail investors subscribed 3.1 times their reserved portion.
Shishir Baijal, chairman and managing director of Knight Frank India, reported that, “The listing of India’s first REITs was one of the most awaited events for the real estate sector as it has taken over a decade and half to come to fruition. The over subscription of REITs is, therefore, a very encouraging sign for the real estate sector at large, and especially for the commercial segment. This is not just India’s first REITs offering, but also the largest in Asia.”
