Prospect Co., Ltd. (Marunouchi, Tokyo; Curtis Freeze, Chairman) announced that the Prospect Group has signed a letter of intent to sell a major block of shares in real estate developer Shin-Nihon Tatemono Co., Ltd. (Jasdaq: 8893) to Columbus KK, a wholly owned subsidiary of daVinci Advisors KK (Osaka Stock Exchange: 4314).
Transaction Details
Via this transaction, Columbus KK will acquire 11,043,000 Shin-Nihon Tatemono shares, equivalent to 33.0% of the outstanding shares of Shin-Nihon Tatemono, at a price of 800 yen per share.
Prospect's Strong Relationship with Shin-Nihon Tatemono
Prospect originally invested in Shin-Nihon Tatemono in 2006 and holds 50.14% of the outstanding equity shares of Shin-Nihon Tatemono. Prospect provided 10 billion yen of financing for Shin-Nihon in June of 2006. Prospect's financing helped the management of Shin-Nihon Tatemono to grow the earnings of the company. Shin-Nihon's operating profits grew 147% year on year in the first half to September 2007.
Prospect has been pleased with the growth and performance of Shin-Nihon Tatemono over time. After careful review and with the full support of the management of Shin-Nihon Tatemono, Prospect concluded that it has largely completed the contribution Prospect can make to Shin-Nihon Tatemono at this stage of that company's growth and that a new investment partner was needed to continue this growth. Prospect continues to be a strong supporter of Shin- Nihon Tatemono. Prospect believes the outlook for Shin-Nihon Tatemono will be enhanced via its new partnership with K.K. daVinci Advisors and Columbus KK.
Best Partner for Shin-Nihon Tatemono's Next Phase
Specifically, daVinci Advisors, Columbus, and Shin-Nihon have announced that they have signed a letter of intent regarding a strategic alliance in the real estate development field. Under this agreement, the companies will exchange information; the daVinci Advisors group will consider acquisition of specific Shin-Nihon Tatemono real estate development projects; exchange of personnel will take place; and, the daVinci Advisors group will provide financial support to Shin-Nihon Tatemono.
According to Prospect Chairman Curtis Freeze, "We are pleased to have contributed to the growth and performance of Shin-Nihon Tatemono. The daVinci Advisors group is the perfect partner for the next phase of Shin-Nihon Tatemono's growth. As a continuing major shareholder of Shin-Nihon Tatemono, we believe that Shin-Nihon Tatemono has a bright future, and that its prospects will be enhanced in partnership with daVinci Advisors. Importantly, this transaction represents the best way to proactively support Shin-Nihon Tatemono and to deliver the most value to all Shin-Nihon Tatemono shareholders."
About the Prospect Group
Prospect Co., Ltd. (KKP) (Marunouchi, Tokyo; Curtis Freeze, Chairman) is licensed to perform both investment advisory and real estate investment management business in Japan, and has a real estate investment team as well as an equity research team. KKP is the parent company of three companies in the Prospect Group, namely: Prospect Asset Management, Inc. (PAMI) (Honolulu, Hawaii), which is registered as an investment adviser under the United States Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended, with Securities and Exchange Commission number 801-47749; Prospect Asset Management (Channel Islands) Ltd. (PAMCI), which is registered as an asset management company with the Island of Guernsey, pursuant to an Act of the Royal Court of the Island. PAMCI, together with affiliate PAMI, manages approximately US$1.27 billion (estimate as of 9/30/2007) in assets distributed among a variety of funds and managed accounts; and Prospect Residential Advisors (PRA), which is registered with the Prime Minister's Office as a REIT asset management company with a license number 38. It launched a listed JREIT in July 2005, the Prospect Residential Investment Corporation (8969), comprising 50 buildings valued at a total of Japanese YEN 63.7 billion (US$517.2 million as of 6/30/2007). -- Prospect Co., Ltd.
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