PARIS and SYDNEY—Unibail-Rodamco's proposed $15.7 billion takeover of Westfield Corp. has received a nod of approval from Westfield's shareholders, effectively paving the way for the international transaction to close. The deal has already been approved by Unibail shareholders, the boards of both companies and Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board, which is where Westfield is based. Unibail-Rodamco is Europe's largest listed commercial property owner.
The new company “brings together the two leaders in the retail property industry, forming the must have partner for international retailers and brands across Europe and select markets in the United States,” says Unibail CEO Christophe Cuvillier in a prepared statement.
“I look forward to June 7, and bringing together the teams of Unibail-Rodamco and Westfield.”
The deal was first announced last December with the two companies declaring the cash-and-stock deal will create “the world's premier developer and operator of flagship shopping destinations.”
The transaction implies an enterprise value of US$24.7 billion for Westfield, whose retail properties include the World Trade Center's retail component in Lower Manhattan.
OneMarket's Spin-Off
One interesting component of the deal is OneMarket, Westfield's San Francisco-based retail tech lab that will spin off as a separate entity to be listed on the Australian Stock Exchange if the acquisition closes. It will be headed by Steven Lowry, co-CEO of Westfield, who is retiring.
The initial plans for the company include the development of a new retail messenger system called Hadley that will connect shoppers to retailers to give retailers better insight into shoppers' browsing history and purchases, according to a recent investor presentation. Nordstrom will be using the system, according to the presentation.
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Erika Morphy
Erika Morphy has been writing about commercial real estate at GlobeSt.com for more than ten years, covering the capital markets, the Mid-Atlantic region and national topics. She's a nerd so favorite examples of the former include accounting standards, Basel III and what Congress is brewing.
