SK affiliate to acquire Young City office complex for W545.8b

An affiliate of Korean real estate developer SK D&D is poised to acquire the Young City office building complex for 545.8 billion won ($444.6 million), a regulatory filing showed Thursday.

A real estate investment trust established by SK D&D’s wholly owned subsidiary D&D Investment will take over the asset from investors including London-based investment firm Actis within May, according to the disclosure.

Young City REIT is designed to acquire the asset, generate income through property management and pay out dividends to its shareholders -- including the SK conglomerate‘s investment arm and brokerage NH Investment & Securities. The disclosed transaction price before value-added taxes is subject to change until the deal reaches its final close, it said.

Young City is a commercial complex located in the Mullae neighbourhood in Yeongdeungpo-gu district, an area in western Seoul near the Yeouido business district. Its two buildings are 13 stories high with five underground levels. Their floor space amounts to 99,140 square meters. Key tenants include Citibank Korea and SK Telecom.

The news comes three months after the consortium comprising SK D&D and NH Investment & Securities became a preferred bidder for the deal in an open tender. Cushman & Wakefield Korea was the bid manager.

According to their plan, SK D&D and NH Investment & Securities will buy a combined 235 billion won worth of equities in Young City REIT.

Before Young City REIT gained approval from the Land Ministry in April, D&D Investment had operated eight REITs, whose total assets stand at over 580 billion won. 

By Son Ji-hyoung (consnow@heraldcorp.com)