SEA reduces stake in real estate developer

Hong Kong's SEA Holdings has reduced its stake in the shrinking New Zealand real estate developer Trans Tasman Properties after taking a large slice of its new Asian entity.

SEA's 66 per cent stake in TTP dropped to 51.9 per cent but TTP executive director Rod Hodge said the move would make "no difference at all" to the developer with land in Auckland, Christchurch, Queenstown and Sydney.

SEA still has control of TTP, which shifted to Singapore last year, even with its reduced stake.

After TTP shareholders voted in favour of a SEA-backed move to split the company into separate Australasian and Asian entities, SEA took a greater stake in the Asian business, resulting in its holding in the Australasian business dropping.

Yesterday, TTP issued a substantial security holder notice to NZX advising of the drop.

Last week, it advised it had completed a deal for its shareholders to swap their equities for a stake in a new entity, Asian Growth Properties.

TTP investors were offered one AGP share for two TTP shares.

Shareholders met in Auckland on December 15 to discuss the deal, which did not go ahead without a fight.

Investors questioned the change, worried about the share price of the new British entity and criticised the deal's timing so close to Christmas.

But 86 per cent of shareholders approved the deal backed by SEA.

SEA now has 69.7 per cent in AGP, to be listed in London but based in the British Virgin Islands for tax purposes. AGP owns real estate in Hong Kong where a majority of its shareholders are based.


New real deal

* Asian Growth Properties is 69.7 per cent owned by SEA, 2.6 per cent owned by TTP and 27.7 per cent owned by other shareholders.
* Trans Tasman Properties is 51.9 per cent owned by SEA Holdings.
* Trans Tasman owned $400 million of real estate but now has $117 million.
* All its Hong Kong developments are now controlled by Asian Growth Properties.