Quintain Estates and Development, the developer behind Wembley Arena, has been bought by U.S. private equity group Lone Star for £700M ($1B), according to Julia Kollewe of the London GUARDIAN. Dallas-based Lone Star "agreed to pay 131p in cash for each Quintain share." It pledged to contribute "significant additional financial resources" to help Quintain build "more homes more quickly" at Wembley. The directors of Quintain "voted unanimously to recommend that shareholders accept the offer." The British property firm "owns the land around Wembley Stadium, where it is building 5,500 homes over the next decade, along with shops and restaurants." Shares in the FTSE 250 company "leapt 24.5% during the day to 133.5p -- above the offer price -- suggesting there are hopes of a rival bid." They "closed at 131p" (GUARDIAN, 7/29). REUTERS' Berry & Vaish wrote Angus Dodd of Lone Star Europe Acquisitions LLP said, "The proposed acquisition represents a unique opportunity for Lone Star to gain further exposure to residential and commercial assets in London." Foreign buyers, particularly U.S. players, "are making huge property purchases in Britain, betting residential as well as commercial property values will continue their steep rise." Quintain "has been trying to get planning consent to ramp up its development for the 43 acres on the Eastern Lands at Wembley Park" (REUTERS, 7/29). In London, Russell Lynch wrote Quintain, headed by Max James, "owns swathes of property around Wembley Stadium, including the new London Designer Outlet and the Wembley Arena" (EVENING STANDARD, 7/29). Also in London, Rebecca Burn-Callander wrote the company "is hoping to turn the area into a start-up hub through a mixture of cheaper rents and super-fast broadband." Quintain COO James Saunders said, "There was one single curry house here when we bought the land, that’s all it had to offer." The London Designer Outlet shopping center now attracts 150,000 visitors a week, "more than the stadium and arena combined" (TELEGRAPH, 7/29).
