Shareholders of ESR Group have voted in favour for the privatisation of the company by way of a scheme of arrangement. The company would be acquired by a consortium which is made up of Starwood Capital Group, SSW Partners, Sixth Street, Warburg Pincus, Qatar Investment Authority, and ESR’s founders.
The company is expected to delist from the mainboard of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange with effect from July 3.
During the EGM on Friday, shareholders voted 99.97% in favour of the privatisation.
The consortium first proposed to take the company private last Dec, valuing it at HK$55.2 billion ($9.53 billion) on an equity value basis. This made it the largest privatisation from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKSE) since 2021. The consortium holds 39.9% of the total issued shares of ESR.
The consortium is of the view that the proposal provides a holistic solution for shareholders with an opportunity to elect between receiving cash to fully monetise their investment at a substantial premium, rolling their shares into the unlisted holding company EquityCo to participate in the next phase of the company’s development alongside the consortium, or a mix of these two options in a proportion of their choosing.
“We are pleased with the approval of the privatisation proposal and deeply grateful to our shareholders for their continued support. This marks an important milestone in ESR’s journey. As a private company, ESR will be better positioned to focus on its long-term strategic transformation and value creation for all stakeholders,” says co-founders and co-CEOs of ESR Group, Stuart Gibson and Jeffrey Shen.
