| Ref No: 26/2005
Thailand's first REIT offered to international investors
attracts subscriptions and indications of interest
4.7 times offer size
* * *
Biggest Thai REIT lead managed by DBS and TMB closed with 34 billion baht worth
of subscriptions and indications of interest
BANGKOK AND SINGAPORE, August 11, 2005 - DBS Bank and TMB Bank Public Company Limited (TMB) announced today that the CPN Retail Growth Property Fund (CPNRF) offering successfully closed with subscriptions and indications of interest equal to about 4.7 times the offer size.
The CPNRF will be Thailand's biggest listed property fund and the first actively offered to international investors. This transaction is a significant step forward in the development of the Thai property fund market and marks the debut of the first Thai Property Fund for Public Offer (PFPO) in the international real estate investment trust market. DBS, acting through its wholly-owned subsidiary DBS Vickers Securities Thailand, and TMB were the joint financial advisors, joint lead managers and joint bookrunners for the offering.
The fund was set up by Bangkok-based Central Pattana, a Thai shopping centre developer, and will initially earn rental income from two shopping malls in Bangkok, Central Plaza Rama II and Central Plaza Rama III.
The CPNRF offering enjoyed strong support from domestic investors in Thailand as well as international investors in Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia and Europe. Based on the offer size of 7.31 billion Baht at 10 Baht per unit (excluding investment units taken up by Central Pattana), the fund attracted subscriptions and indications of interest amounting to approximately 34 billion Baht, or about 4.7 times the offer size. This included indications of interest from more than 130 international institutional investors amounting to approximately 28 billion Baht.
Stephen Finch, Managing Director of Debt Capital Markets at DBS Bank said: "We are pleased with the response from the international investor community to the CPNRF offering. The success of this offering reaffirms the status of the sponsor Central Pattana as the leader in the Thai retail property market and marks a major milestone in the development of its property management capability in listed property funds in Thailand."
Tanate Phutrakul, Co-chief of Corporate and Investment Banking at TMB said: "CPNRF received overwhelming subscriptions from both retail and institutional investors through TMB's nationwide network of over 400 branches, which reflects the investors' increasing understanding of PFPO as an alternative investment vehicle. As the largest fund investing in retail shopping complexes with strong future growth potential from rental increase and new asset acquisitions, the success of CPNRF has spurred the development of PFPOs."
In view of the strong demand as well as the "small-lot-first" allocation mechanism regulated by the Thai Securities and Exchange Commission, the largest allocation per subscription is about 52.9 million Baht. As at the close of the subscription period, there were approximately 1,400 subscriptions of 50 million Baht or smaller, and about 88 subscriptions greater than 50 million Baht.
Investors will be informed about their final allocations by end of the day. The fund is expected to be listed on the Thai stock exchange on August 23.
About DBS Bank
Headquartered in Singapore, DBS is one of the largest financial services groups in Asia. The largest bank in Singapore and the fifth largest banking group in Hong Kong as measured by assets, DBS has leading positions in consumer banking, treasury and markets, asset management, securities brokerage, equity and debt fund raising. Beyond the anchor markets of Singapore and Hong Kong, DBS serves corporate, institutional and retail customers through its operations in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, India and The Philippines. In China, the bank has branches and representative offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Fuzhou, Tianjin and Dongguan. The Bank's credit ratings are one of the highest among banks competing in the Asia-Pacific region, and the highest among banks in Singapore. More information about DBS Group Holdings and DBS Bank can be obtained from our website www.dbs.com.
About TMB Bank Public Company Limited
TMB Bank Public Company Limited, incorporated in Thailand, is a leading private sector commercial bank and financial services company operating a wide range of products and services to corporate and consumer customers in Thailand. In September 2004, the Bank completed a merger with DBS Thai Danu Bank and The Industrial Finance Corporation of Thailand, creating the fifth largest bank in Thailand in terms of assets. The Bank's principal business activities include corporate & investment banking services, SME banking services and consumer banking services. As of 30 June 2005, the Bank has expanded to include a network of 440 branches. More information about TMB Bank can be obtained from our website www.tmb.co.th.
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