Catella Strengthens UK Presence by Signing a Conditioned Share Purchase Agreement to Acquire Majority Stake in APAM Ltd

SOLNA, Sweden, March 11, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Catella AB has, through Catella Property Fund Management AB ("CPFM"), signed a share purchase agreement to acquire a majority stake in the leading UK real estate investment and asset management company, APAM Ltd. Closing of the transaction requires regulatory approval and other conditions to be fulfilled.

APAM Ltd ("APAM") has experienced fast growth over recent years and had revenues of approximately GBP 7 million during the calendar year 2017. CPFM has agreed to acquire 75% of the shares in APAM for a price corresponding to GBP 18 million, on a debt and cash free basis. A non-refundable down payment of the purchase price of GBP 2.7 million was made at signing, while the remaining amount is to be paid in cash upon completion. Catella is not obligated to complete the transaction according to the agreement but it is expected to complete during second half of 2018, subject to necessary regulatory approval having been obtained from the financial supervisory authority in Luxembourg, Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF).

"As a leading company within the strategically important UK market, APAM constitutes a key piece in Catella's ambition to build the pan-European platform Catella has built the last years within our Property Investment Management business area, which has been our focus for the last four years", says Knut Pedersen, CEO of Catella AB.

APAM is an independent real estate investment and asset manager operating exclusively in the UK market with a combination of skills to offer clients an 'end to end' approach to support their investment strategy. APAM has assets under management ("AUM") of GBP 1.4 billion and 41 employees.

Simon Cooke and William Powell, founders and executive directors of APAM, will remain shareholders in APAM, each with 12.5% of the share capital and voting power after the transaction. APAM will continue to be independently run by its current management team and to pursue its successful growth strategy within UK. Co-operation between Catella and APAM will start immediately. Management from both companies see significant opportunities to strengthen their offering to international investors by leveraging the combined pan-European reach the two companies can provide. With APAM, Catella will reach SEK 200bn in AUM (GBP 18bn).