Pension fund eyes JSE listing

PROPERTY: SET TO BRING RETAIL PORTFOLIO TO MARKET

The GEPF plans to list a property portfolio.

Shopping centres in Joburg, Pretoria and Cape Town included.

The Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) plans to list a property portfolio of shopping malls on the JSE, bringing real estate investors more exposure to SA’s retail sector.

Pareto Limited, which is 76% owned by the GEPF, is set to list on the JSE’s main board in 2019 – a plan that was first mooted by management since 2016, but was put on ice due to SA’s difficult economic and trading conditions.

Kevin Roman, CEO of Mowana Properties, confirmed Pareto’s market debut for 2019 at the South African Institute for Black Property Practitioners Convention on Wednesday. Mowana Properties is 100% owned by Pareto.

Roman and Pareto CEO Malose Kekana were not available to comment.

A successful listing means Pareto would bring a predominantly retail portfolio worth more than R30 billion that includes shareholdings in shopping malls, among them Sandton City in Johannesburg, Menlyn Park in Pretoria, and Tyger Valley in Cape Town. Kekana previously told Moneyweb Pareto would only list on the JSE when economic and retail conditions had improved and once its more than R2 billion capital expenditure programme was spent to upgrade its shopping malls.

This, he said, would enable Pareto to bring a large and quality property portfolio to investors.

A real estate investment trust structure (Reit) was mulled by Pareto, joining the ranks of Reits that enjoy tax incentives under the structure. And the GEPF, which is Africa’s largest pension fund with nearly R2 trillion worth of assets, would remain a large shareholder in Pareto post the JSE-listing.

Some market watchers believe the timing for listing may be difficult given the volatility on the JSE’s real estate sector and investors that are becoming increasingly more discerning.