Blackstone ‘desperate’ for a large mall presence; may pay more than market value for Delhi's Select Citywalk

Investment firm Blackstone, that is reportedly looking to acquire Delhi’s premium mall Select Citywalk, is “desperate” for a large mall presence in the metros, said sources. People in the know said that they might end up paying more than the market value for Select, considering the lure of the property. These comments come after media reports stated that Blackstone’s Indian retail portfolio arm, Nexus Malls, is in talks to acquire the premium mall located in South Delhi. 

“Blackstone is "desperate" for a large mall presence in the metros, which is limited so far. Therefore, they will pay more than market value for Select -- this property is marquee and will be of a huge strategic advantage in every sense. Among other things, it is a presence in Delhi and within the capital, a top-quality location,” said sources to Business Today. 

However, they also said that only if the valuation is "super attractive" will it go through and given Blackstone's keenness to be a big mall player, they may decide to cut a high-value cheque. 

According to a report in the Economic Times, the acquisition is likely to be part of Blackstone’s broader strategy to launch retail real estate investment trusts (REITs). The daily reported that the value of the transaction could be between Rs 3,000 crore and Rs 4,000 crore, while the rental of the mall is about Rs 1,200 per square feet per month, one of the highest in the country. 

The companies Blackstone and Nexus Malls, and Arjun Sharma, Yog Raj Arora, and Neeraj Ghei, who conceptualised the mall, are yet to confirm the reports or issue a statement. 

Nexus Malls' portfolio in India includes malls such as Nexus Ahmedabad One, Nexus Amritsar, Nexus Westend in Pune, Nexus Seawoods in Navi Mumbai, Nexus Elante in Chandigarh, Treasure Island in Indore, Nexus Indore Central, Nexus Shantiniketan in Bengaluru, Nexus Esplande in Bhubaneswar, The Pavillion Pune, Nexus Hyderabad, Nexus Whitefield in Bengaluru, Nexus Celebration in Udaipur, Nexus Koramangala in Bengaluru, Fiza by Nexus in Mangalore, Nexus Vijaya in Chennai, and Nexus Centre City in Mysore. 

Also read: Adani Logistics acquires inland container depot Tumb for Rs 835 cr