Cromwell E-Reit raises 100m euros in private placement

CROMWELL European Real Estate Investment Trust (Cromwell E-Reit) has raised 100 million euros (S$160.5 million) from a private placement of 232.6 million new units, its manager said on Thursday.

Cromwell E-Reit had sought to raise at least 90 million euro by placing out between 200 million and 209.3 million units. The placement was upsized following strong demand, the manager said.

The issue price was 43 euro cents per new unit, the lowest end of the indicative range of between 43 and 45 euro cents announced by the manager on Wednesday.

It represents a discount of 10.8 per cent to the volume-weighted average price (VWAP) of 48.2 euro cents of all trades done on Feb 23, the market day before the placement agreement was signed.

In its filing, the Reit manager said the placement was oversubscribed and "well-supported" by existing unitholders and new investors, including regional and global long-only institutional investors, property specialist funds, and private wealth clients.

Roughly a third of the proceeds will be used to replenish working capital, following the Reit's recently completed 52.6 million euro acquisition of a logistics park in Italy.

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Another 64 million euros will partially fund the Reit's acquisition of 11 properties in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, which is expected to complete before March 31, 2021.

The rest will be used to pay fees and expenses incurred as a result of the placement.

DBS; Citigroup Global Markets Singapore; and UBS, Singapore Branch were the joint underwriters for the placement.

The new units are expected to be listed on March 5.

Following the announcement, Cromwell E-Reit on Thursday morning requested the lifting of a trading halt it called for on Wednesday before the market opened. Units of the Reit last closed at 48 euro cents on Feb 23.