Billionaire Oei Hong Leong takes 20% stake in A-Smart Holdings

BILLIONAIRE Oei Hong Leong is set to acquire a 20 per cent stake in printing and recycling specialist A-Smart Holdings for S$5.37 million, A-Smart said in a bourse filing on Thursday (Dec 8).

This translates into an issuance of 29.8 million new ordinary shares to Oei at S$0.18 apiece, a 50 per cent premium to A-Smart’s closing price of S$0.12 on 6 Dec, 2022. 

The placement makes Oei a substantial shareholder, and also the second-largest shareholder after Chinese entrepreneur Ma Wai Dong, who acquired a 52 per cent stake in 2016.

When completed, the proposed placement will result in a transfer of controlling interest to Oei and will require shareholders’ approval at an extraordinary general meeting to be convened. 

The new shares to be issued will be subjected to a two-year moratorium from its issuance date. 

Oei sees A-Smart as an “ideal candidate” to tap the economic expansion of Timor-Leste’s resource-rich economy.

“The young and resource-rich economy of Timor-Leste has been on my radar for some time. With the country’s eventual admission into Asean, I believe it will trigger a sustained period of economic expansion. Hence, A-Smart is identified as an ideal candidate given its groundwork established in Timor-Leste’s property market from as early as 2017,” Oei said.

A-Smart is set to start construction for a mixed-use development in Dili, the capital city of Timor-Leste, later this month. The project has an estimated gross development value of US$85 million and will be carried out through a 69-per cent-owned consortium.

The group has another plot of land in the country set aside for a high-rise mixed development in the future. It has also signed a memorandum of understanding with a local real estate company, Dili Development, to jointly develop a seafront resort in the capital city. 

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A-Smart’s chief executive officer and executive director Lim Huan Chiang said: “The proposed placement brings a twofold benefit to A-Smart, one being the fresh capital to fund our working capital needs of property development projects in Timor Leste.”

“Other than that, the inclusion of a prominent businessman in Mr Oei Hong Leong as a strategic investor is much welcomed as he brings years of experience and an extensive business network to the equation.” 

A-Smart shares ended Thursday flat at S$0.121.