BWP REIT, a newly formed single asset company established to acquire the office-led mixed-use Bridgewater Place development in Leeds, has raised £35m from the issue of 35,000,000 new ordinary shares, with a nominal value of 10p each at an issue price of 100p per share, and commenced trading on the International Property Securities Exchange (IPSX).
M7 Real Estate Financial Services will serve as alternative investment fund manager to the company and M7 Real Estate will act as asset manager in respect of the property.
Richard Croft, executive chairman of M7, said: “The planned admission of BWP REIT to the IPSX wholesale market, following a successful fundraise, is a strong endorsement for both IPSX, as a nascent capital market for real estate and the proposed asset management and remediation strategy that is to be undertaken at Bridgewater Place.
“The acquisition of this capital compromised, but fundamentally core, asset will allow investors to take part in a major repositioning that will create one of Leeds’s premier office destinations in what is, and will remain, a supply constrained market due to the current cost of construction.
“Furthermore, the equity raise has made allowance for BWP REIT to tackle one of the core issues facing many freeholders and their leaseholders, namely cladding remediation. BWP REIT will be undertaking a full remediation of the cladding without recourse to the leaseholders within the residential element of the building. This we believe will make a material social impact. The admission of BWP REIT on IPSX wholesale creates liquidity and transparency for investors, where previously participation in such a transaction would not allow it.”
Roger Clarke, CEO of IPSX, added: “The successful admission of another security to trading on the exchange represents a significant milestone for IPSX. To have achieved this floatation amidst such a challenging market backdrop for IPOs across all sectors is testament to the clear demand for opportunities that enable efficient and transparent investment into liquid, asset-backed companies via a regulated trading platform.
“At a time when liquidity is increasingly difficult to come by, the endorsement of our third issuer demonstrates the benefits of IPSX’s platform in allowing real estate companies to efficiently raise capital by fractionalising their assets while still retaining ownership.”
