Global buyers roll back into property
After a long gap, global investors are buying large retail properties for big bucks. While investors are buying them to build their portfolios, global retailers are acquiring properties to enter markets such as Mumbai. A month after Singapore government-owned $100-billion sovereign fund GIC bought 50 per cent stake in Viviana Mall in Thane, on the outskirts of Mumbai, for over Rs 1,000 crore, US-based private equity (PE) firm Blackstonebought a one-million-square-feet mall being developed byL&T Realty in the Seawoods area of Navi Mumbai, said a source. The deal is expected to be closed between Rs 1,200 crore and Rs 1,500 crore. Blackstone and L&T Realty executives could not be contacted for comments. Late last year, Blackstone acquired two retail assets of Gurgaon-based developer Alpha G in Amritsar and Ahmedabad for around Rs 800 crore. "Many global investors are looking to buy good mall properties. It will help them build portfolios in the c...