Atterbury and Sanlam get piece of Accra Mall

Atterbury and Sanlam get piece of Accra Mall

FMCG SUPPLIER NEWS

IOL Business - May 29th 2012, 08:17

Property developer Atterbury and financial services group Sanlam have acquired the 85 percent shareholding in the Accra Mall in Ghana from pan-emerging markets private equity firm Actis for an undisclosed amount.
 

Accra Mall is Ghana’s first A-grade shopping and leisure centre and home to international chains including Shoprite and Game.

David Morley, the head of real estate at Actis, said last week that this strategic sale reflected the serious interest of quality institutional investors in sub-Saharan African property assets. Working in partnership with Ghanaian entrepreneurs, the Owusu-Akyaw family, Actis managed the mall development process, invested the equity and raised the debt to finance the project.

The mall opened its doors fully let in July 2008 and currently attracts 135 000 shoppers each week.

Morley said the development of Accra Mall came at a time when Ghanaians still sourced even basic goods from London and Johannesburg but they could now buy products locally with pride.

“Accra Mall’s success gives us great optimism for our upcoming projects in Accra, both our mixed use development in the airport area and One Airport Square,” he said.

Morley said Actis was the most experienced private equity property developer in sub-Saharan Africa and since 2004 had developed 10 institutional quality assets in seven countries in the region.

These included other A-grade retail malls, such as Ikeja City Mall and The Palms in Lagos and The Junction in Nairobi. Morley said Actis intended to initiate and develop property projects worth $550 million (R4.6 billion) in sub-Saharan Africa over the next three years.

Actis invests exclusively in emerging markets and has a growing portfolio of investments in Asia, Africa and Latin America, apart from $1.5bn invested in 18 African countries.