This is HUGE news.
How HUGE, you ask?
3rd Largest APAC REIT huge.
Jokes aside, CapitaLand Mall Trust (CMT) and CapitaLand Commercial Trust (CCT) are looking to merge via scheme of arrangement, renaming themselves as CapitaLand Integrated Commercial Trust (CICT) in the process.
This merger will create the 3rd largest REIT in the Asia Pacific and propel CICT to overtake Ascendas REIT as the largest REIT in Singapore by market cap.
I think this move comes as a huge surprise to investors and analysts, myself included. REIT Merger speculation for CapitaLand’s REITs had largely been focused on CMT and CapitaLand Retail China Trust (CRCT) given their common mandate over retail assets.
Anyway, as usual, let’s take a closer look at this transformative merger.