Japanese property and hotel operator Unizo Holdings confirmed over the weekend that it has received six more acquisition offers from various institutions aiming to outbid US private equity company Blackstone Group. The bids are reportedly priced competitively to go against Blackstone Group's standing $1.6 billion for the company.
Unizo Holdings mentioned on Sunday that the offers it had received had come from one Japanese fund, one domestic firm, and four overseas investment funds. The Japanese firm, which owns, leases, and manages offices, hotels, and buildings in Tokyo and the United States, did not name the institutions that had submitted their bids to acquire the company.
The addition of new bidders in the escalating bidding war for the Japanese hotel and property operator could further complicate negotiations. Prior to the announcement of the new bidders, two top global investment groups have been in the lead to acquire the company, namely Blackstone Group and New York-based investment management firm Fortress Investment Group.
Despite its announcement, Unizo Holdings clarified that the bids that have been submitted by the six institutions have not met their demands and requirements. This essentially means that both Fortress Investment and Blackstone could still be in the running to acquire the company. Unizo did not elaborate on the details of the bids, including their prices and other terms.
Back in July, Unizo became the target of a hostile takeover attempt by Japanese travel company HIS Co. This was then followed by an attempt by Fortress to acquire the company, an offer that was ultimately rejected by Unizo. Fortress offered to acquire Unizo at 4,100 yen per share, valuing the company at around $1.3 billion.
Last month, Blackstone made a significantly higher counteroffer, promising to buy the company at 5,000 yen per share. The offer essentially valued the Japanese firm at around $1.6 billion. Blackstone's limited-time offer to acquire Unizo reached its deadline last week, but Blackstone announced on Friday that it would be extending the deadline.
Unizo mentioned in a statement on Sunday that it was still in active negotiations with Blackstone and Fortress. The company stated that it was negotiating with Fortress to raise its bid to 5,000 yen per share. Unizo has reportedly also asked the new bidders to raise their respective offer prices 5,000 yen per share or more, which they are still currently considering.
Unizo Group and its subsidiaries own and operate dozens of office buildings and property located in major regional urban areas around Japan and the United States. The company also operates business hotels located in central areas in major cities and regional hub cities in both countries.
