Blackstone in $2.4 billion bid for Australia office giant Investa

US private equity giant Blackstone has made a $2.4 billion bid for Investa, a month after it made a lower, confidential offer to the Australian office property giant

The ticker and trading information for Blackstone Group is displayed at the post where it is traded on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Shares in Investa surged 10.26% to 5.10 Australian dollars in intra-day trading in Sydney on Monday. Photo: Reuters
The ticker and trading information for Blackstone Group is displayed at the post where it is traded on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Shares in Investa surged 10.26% to 5.10 Australian dollars in intra-day trading in Sydney on Monday. Photo: Reuters

Sydney:US private equity giant Blackstone has made a $2.4 billion (3.1 billion Australian dollars) bid for office property giant Investa, the Australian-listed firm said on Monday.

Investa Office Fund—which has 4.0 billion Australian dollars of Australian assets under management—said the 5.25 Australian dollars per share bid was unsolicited.

The company’s board is set to “unanimously recommend” the proposal, saying it presented shareholders “with an opportunity to realise their investment... for significant value and certainty”.

The bid came just over a month after Blackstone made a lower, confidential offer, Investa added.

Shares in Investa surged 10.26% to 5.10 Australian dollars in intra-day trading in Sydney on Monday.

The move into the Australian real estate market follows Blackstone’s purchase of an Auckland office precinct in New Zealand for 635 million New Zealand dollars ($441 million) two weeks ago.