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US real estate investment firm plans IPO — in Singapore
KBS Realty Advisors hopes to raise $500M
It’s not unusual for U.S. real estate firms to go public. It’s unusual to do it all the way across the Pacific. California-based KBS Realty Advisors wants to raise around $500 million on Singapore’s stock market by listing some of its U.S. properties as a real estate investment trust through a joint venture with local asset manager Keppel.
The new public company would include close to a dozen U.S. buildings in cities such as Seattle and Houston, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Canadian insurer Manulife Financial listed a REIT in Singapore last year that raised $470 million and included U.S. properties. Singapore’s stock market includes 40 REITs with a combined market value of $60 billion.
Last year a KBS-managed REIT became the first U.S. trust to raise bonds in Israel.
KBS’ New York City holdings include a Williamsburg rental building at 424 Bedford Avenue and a Financial District office building at 110 William Street. [WSJ] — Konrad Putzier