Latest news with #Azrapart
IOL News
a day ago
- Business
- IOL News
Accelerate Property Fund reports significant credit losses and strategic disposals
JSE-listed Accelerate Property Fund has Fourways Mall as the flagship of its portfolio. Vacancies in the mall decreased to 13.7% by the en of the year to March 31, 2025, from 19% a year before. Image: Fourways Mall/Facebook Accelerate Property Fund (APF), which has Fourways Mall as the flagship in its portfolio of retail, office and industrial properties, has massively increased its credit losses to R1.05 billion due to the impairment of a related party agreement of R970.7 million. In the results for the year to March 31, rental income fell by 5.7% to R824.04m. Net property income was down by 8.3% to R494.74m. Including the expected credit loss, the taxed loss increased 103.2% to R1.27bn from a R624.74m taxed loss a year before. The big impairment related to a settlement agreement entered into in November last year, between APF and co-developer of the mall, Azrapart, that had lapsed due to suspensive conditions not being fulfilled in the requisite timeframe. Last month, Azrapart was placed into business rescue by the High Court in Bloemfontein, following an application by FirstRand's RMB and Investec, but Azrapart is appealing the ruling. Other parties to the agreement are the trustees of the Michael Family Trust; and Accelerate's former CEO Michael Georgiou, who also controls Azrapart. Although a new agreement was drawn up, it had still not been signed at the release of the results. As a result, the amount was impaired. 'As at the date of this report, Mr Georgiou (on behalf of the related parties) has not signed the new settlement agreement,' Accelerate's directors said. They said that despite its challenges and the geopolitical and economic headwinds, the group focused on strategic objectives - optimising the balance sheet through disposals to reduce debt and the concomitant reduction of SA REIT loan-to-value. During the year, eight assets were disposed of with a combined lettable area of 63 284 square metres, for R694m. After the financial year-end, Erf 7 Roggebaai and 1 Charles Crescent were transferred with a combined area of 15 547 square metres. The proceeds of R62.4m were used to settle debt. Sale agreements for a further four properties were concluded to the value of R688.5m, with a lettable area of 41 719 square metres, and a combined vacancy of 28.8%. The group's average collection rate was 98.9%. The directors said the formation of the Government of National Unity had improved investor confidence, and GDP growth was projected to accelerate to 1.5% in 2025 supported by stabilising electricity supply. Inflation had moderated. Regarding the outstanding related party matter, the directors said preliminary legal advice suggested the company's claims against the related parties were unlikely to have prescribed. 'However, certain aspects of the legal position remain under consideration.' Operating costs fell by 13.5%, largely due to decreased staff costs, but legal fees increased after the conclusion of sale agreements, related circulars, redrafting of related party agreements and the restructured finance agreements. Disposals unlocked proceeds of R694m utilised to reduce interest-bearing borrowings. During the year, R110.4m was spent on properties which includes investment properties and non-current assets held-for-sale. This was funded from available funds from facilities as well as specific facilities put in place for Fourways Mall. Vacancies decreased to 19.4% as at March 31, 2025, from 21.1% as at the same time a year before. Vacancies in Fourways Mall decreased to 13.7% from 19% following an aggressive drive to attract new tenants. The SA REIT LTV decreased to 48.3% from 50.3%. This was mainly a function of the disposals and LTV was expected to improve as the disposal programme progressed. On July 25, 2025, the company successfully raised R100m through a fully underwritten rights offer. Visit:
IOL News
12-07-2025
- Business
- IOL News
Accelerate continues with R100 million rights offer amid large related-party uncertainties
JSE-listed Accelerate Property Fund, which owns 50%of Fourways Mall, will undertake a R100 million rights issue on July 14, 2025, to further improve the mall and for the company's working capital requirements. Image: Fourways Mall/Facebook Accelerate Property Fund (APF), which has Fourways Mall Shopping Centre as its main asset, said Friday a R100 million rights offer that opens on July 14 will continue, in spite of uncertainty about the outcome of a R800m agreement with the developer of the mall. APF's share price fell 5.56% to 51 cents on Friday, much in line with the share price of 53 cents that it traded at a year earlier. 'APF remains committed to restructuring its operations with a focus on improving the Mall as APF's largest asset. The opening of the rights offer… is an important step towards the completion of these restructuring efforts, the proceeds of which will be utilised for improvements of the Mall and working capital needs of APF,' a notice said Friday. APF's directors said the rights issue would add to the R200m already raised by APF in a rights offer in June 2023. Meanwhile, a settlement agreement entered into in November last year, between APF and co-developer of the mall, Azrapart, had lapsed due to suspensive conditions not being fulfilled in the requisite timeframe. Last month, media reports showed Azrapart was placed into business rescue by the High Court in Bloemfontein, following an application by FirstRand's RMB and Investec, but Azrapart is appealing the ruling. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading Other parties to the agreement with APF are Accelerate Property Management Company, the manager of the properties owned by APF other than the Mall; Fourways Mall Managing Agent and Fourways Precinct, the former manager of the Mall; the trustees of the Michael Family Trust; and APF's former CEO Michael Georgiou, who also controls Azrapart. Shareholders were previously told that APF would engage with the parties to conclude a new agreement, on the same or close to the same terms as the initial settlement agreement. 'Although both parties have indicated their willingness to sign the new agreement, the new agreement has not yet been concluded…and negotiations with the related parties are ongoing.' Should the new agreement be concluded, the balances due to and from the related parties would be offset to R0. Should the new agreement fail to be concluded, R800m, being the amounts receivable from the related parties, might be impaired by APF. APF said it would publish its results for the year to March 31, 2025, by July 31, 2025, whether or not the new agreement was concluded between APF and the related parties. If the new agreement was not concluded, legal advice would be sought about the validity and quantum of the claims. APF would also consider all available remedies to seek the recovery of the amounts due by the related parties to APF, it said in a statement. Visit:
IOL News
13-06-2025
- Business
- IOL News
Court ruling leads to business rescue for Azrapart, owner of Fourways Mall
The South Gauteng High Court has put Azrapart, which owns half of South Africa's largest shopping center, Fourways Mall, under business rescue after it was unable to pay Investec and First Rand Bank R2.8 billion. Image: Fourways Mall/Facebook The South Gauteng High Court has put Azrapart, which owns half of South Africa's largest shopping center, Fourways Mall, under business rescue after it was unable to pay Investec and First Rand Bank R2.8 billion. Azrapart's only business activity relates to the joint ownership and management of Fourways Mall, a super-regional shopping centre in Fourways, Johannesburg. The other half of the mall is owned by listed fund APF. Azrapart is controlled by Eriologix, which is in turn controlled by the Michael Family Trust. The ruling caps off a series of court matters, including one in March in which both Investec and First Rand Bank, acting through its Rand Merchant Bank, argued that Azrapart owed them R2.3 billion, which it was unable to pay. 'As a result, the court found that there is no doubt strong indications that the first respondent is in financial distress,' the latest ruling handed down earlier this month stated. To further complicate matters, in May 2024, the Competition Tribunal decided that the two banks that successfully placed Azrapart under business rescue, could take control of the mall owner in a bid to restructure Azrapart's debt. In March this year, Azrapart argued that it was in the process of finalising a transaction with Redcore Hospitality, a company registered in the United Kingdom. In terms of this transaction, it would receive a capital injection of R2.6 billion. This, the mall owner argued, would enable it to pay its debt. 'In an affidavit filed on behalf of the first respondent, there was an undertaking that the first respondent [Azrapart] would make payment of the R2.6 billion so received to the applicants [Investec and First Rand], which would be more than sufficient to cover the liability of the first respondent towards the applicants.' In the March ruling, the issue arose of whether this amount would be paid, and final judgment for the banks' application to have Azrapart placed under administration. Between March and June, Azrapart filed several applications indicating that the cash injection would be forthcoming. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad Loading However, a subsequent investigation revealed that Redcore didn't actually have the money it needed to pay Azrapart. 'It appears then that, having regard to all the information placed before it, this Court still cannot find with any measure of certainty that the R2.6bn will be transferred to the first respondent by Redcore. It follows that the first respondent should now be placed in business rescue,' the South Gauteng High Court said in June. It added that this will 'enable the independent rescue practitioners to assess any agreement with Redcore, and if determined viable, to pursue such transactions further in the first respondent's business rescue proceedings'. Under the latest ruling, Piers Marsden and Lance Schapiro have been appointed as joint interim business rescue practitioners. As part of the process, the mall owner has been placed under supervision. The Fourways Mall partnership came about in 2015, when the Competition Tribunal approved a merger between Accelerate Property Fund and Azrapart, owners of property in the Fourways area. 'It was found that neither merger would have an impact on competition,' it said. IOL
