Acquisition
July 03 2003 - 3:01AM
UK Regulatory
RNS Number:1040N
Marylebone Warwick Balfour Grp PLC
03 July 2003
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
3rd July 2003
MWB BUYS OUT DLJ'S STAKE IN SERVICED OFFICE BUSINESS
Marylebone Warwick Balfour Group Plc ("MWB") today announces it has acquired DLJ
Real Estate Capital Partners' ("RECP") 20% equity holding and #23m preference
share and loan stock interest in MWB Business Exchange Limited ("Business
Exchange"), its serviced offices subsidiary.
The payment comprises an initial #7.5m in cash and #8.5m in the form of a loan
from RECP repayable over the next six years at an interest rate of 9%. The loan
is capable of early repayment without penalty. Up to #9.5m may also be payable
dependent on the amount of cash that MWB realises from its investment in
Business Exchange. There is no contingent liability for this deferred
consideration.
As a result of this purchase MWB's interest in its serviced offices subsidiary
rises to 85% of the equity and substantially all of its preference shares.
Subsequent to this transaction, MWB's serviced office operations have been
demerged into two separate and independent groups of companies, one for the UK
and one for Europe.
Richard Balfour Lynn, MWB's Chief Executive, said: "This is a further step in
our stated strategy and enables us to examine a range of options for the
european side of our business."
more.
Contact:
Richard Balfour-Lynn, Chief Executive, MWB. Tel: 020 7706 2121
Baron Phillips, Baron Phillips Associates. Tel: 020 7397 8932
Notes to Editors:
1. Currently MWB owns a total of 44 serviced office centres, providing
14,400 workstations.
2. Nine centres are located in Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt,
Berlin and Munich.
3. RECP's investment in Business Exchange was made by DLJ's
investment entity RECP Business Exchange Holdco L.L.C.
4. This corporate activity follows Alchemy Partners' majority
acquisition of Regus' UK arm and the Soros Funds' financial support for the
acquisition of HQ's UK operations.
Ends.
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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