Billionaire Harry Triguboff is in talks with a Chinese company to sell Australia’s... Read More
“It’s of great interest for me to sell” Meriton Pty, Triguboff, 81, said in an interview in Sydney, adding that he last met with the interested buyer last week. He declined to identify the company. “I showed them my valuation, they’re looking at their valuation; that’s what we’re doing now.”
Asian developers including Greenland Holding Group Co. and Singapore-based Frasers Centrepoint Ltd. (FCL) are seeking to tap into a 12 percent surge in Sydney apartment prices. Meriton has capitalized on the price gain by buying A$1 billion ($880 million) of land since January 2013.
The closely held company, based in Sydney, has had its
busiest year on record, starting work on more than triple the number of dwellings in the 12 months through June from the previous year, according to spokeswoman Lisa Thomas.
Triguboff, who’s born in Dalian, China, and grew up in the Russian community of Tianjin, is Australia’s fourth-richest person with a net worth of $5.3 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
He’s talking with only one potential buyer, he said, and will sell only if the Chinese acquirer is willing to take over all of Meriton.
Chinese Developers
Shares of Chinese developers have been among the worst performers in Asia this year as slowing home sales on the mainland and rising debt have sapped investor confidence, Bloomberg Industries analyst Robert Fong said.Greenland, China Vanke Co. and Xinyuan Real Estate Co. are among Chinese developers venturing overseas as the mainland housing market falters and the government eases restrictions on foreign investments by domestic companies. They’re also following local buyers who are migrating.
Meriton sells about 15 percent of its apartments to Chinese buyers, according to company figures.
The developer owns enough land to build about 15,000 apartments, up from a traditional pipeline of about 8,000, company figures show. More than 2,000 of those will be built by the end of 2014.
Meriton, which has A$275 million of debt, started work on 7,929 dwellings in the year through June, up from 2,573 over the previous 12 months, according to company figures. It owns or manages about 2,200 units as long-term accommodation, and rents out 3,200 serviced apartments, according to the company.
Triguboff last year said pension funds from Canada and the U.K. as well as Chinese investors had approached him through bankers to buy all or part of Meriton.
Even if he sells Meriton now, Triguboff has no plans to retire.
“I want to work for a bank to fix up their problem loans because they don’t know how to do it,” he said.
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