// Shaftesbury and Capital & Counties Properties merge to create a new company with combined portfolio value of £5bn in heart of West End
// The new firm will be led by Jonathan Nicholls as Non-Executive chairman and Ian Hawksworth as CEO
Real estate giants Shaftesbury and Capital & Counties Properties have agreed the terms of a £3.5bn all-share merger that will create a combined group with a portfolio valued at around £5bn, called Shaftesbury Capital PLC.
The merger will bring together the two companies, located across London’s West End including Covent Garden, Carnaby, Chinatown and Soho, to create a leading mixed-use central London real estate investment trust.
The combined group’s portfolio will comprise of around 670 predominantly freehold buildings, with roughly 2.9 million sq ft of lettable space across 2,000 commercial and residential units.
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Shaftesbury shareholders will own 53% of the group while Capco investors will own 43%.
The new business will be led by Jonathan Nicholls as Non-Executive chairman and Ian Hawksworth as chief executive, while Situl Jobanputra will be the chief financial officer and Chris Ward will be chief operating officer.
After 36 years at Shaftesbury, including 11 years as CEO, Brian Bickell will also be retiring on completion of the merger.
Shaftesbury chairman Jonathan Nicholls said: “The merger of Shaftesbury and Capco unites two complementary and adjacent real estate portfolios under single ownership. Shaftesbury Capital will own a first-class portfolio in some of the most iconic destinations across London’s vibrant West End.
“The experienced leadership team, with their impressive track record of innovation and curation, should ensure a sustainable and prosperous future for our destinations, the communities they serve and our wider stakeholders. With cost and operational synergies, a strong corporate governance framework, increased scale and greater equity market liquidity, the combination also provides a firm foundation for future value creation for our shareholders.”
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