Old Mutual Namibia, through its Tunga Real Estate Fund, has concluded the acquisition of a controlling 63.8% stake in MICC Properties Namibia for N$700 million.
As part of conditions of the deal revealed by The Brief in December, the Tunga Fund will acquire equity in Johannesburg Stock Exchange listed Vukile Property Fund’s Namibian portfolio and have a call option for a period of three years to acquire the balance of Vukile’s equity in the entity.
Vukile will retain the asset management function for five commercial properties in Namibia owned by MICC – 269 Independence, Katutura Shopping Centre, and retail centres in Ondangwa, Oshakati and Oshikango – for a period of five years and will earn a fee.
The listed firm has over the past few years been looking to exit the Namibian market and focus on the South African township and rural market as well as in Spain.
After the acquisition, Tunga Fund will appoint three directors to the MICC board while Vukile will have two directors on the 5-member board.
“This investment serves as a great catalyst in accelerating economic growth and addressing Namibia’s most critical infrastructural needs, while still delivering commensurate returns for investors. We are proud to bring these assets back under Namibian ownership and look forward to managing them for the benefit of Namibian pension fund investors and the local economy,” Lionel Kannemeyer, the Managing Director for the Old Mutual Investment Group Namibia said on Wednesday.
“This investment forms part of Old Mutual Namibia’s unlisted property strategy targeted at the deployment of institutional funds in residential and commercial property assets. This acquisition has equally enabled Old Mutual Namibia to lay the groundwork for an eventual full ownership of these properties by Namibian investors.”
The Tunga Real Estate Fund is an unlisted property fund, capitalized by the Government Institutions Pension Fund (GIPF), aimed at commercial and affordable housing development.
