Allen & Overy has represented Chinese warehousing developer e-Shang and its Korean subsidiary on their joint venture with Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) and APG Asset Management, which were represented by DLA Piper and Baker & McKenzie respectively.
The JV aims to develop and own logistics real estate assets across South Korea. It will be initially capitalised with equity commitments worth $500 million, with an option to expand total capitalisation to $1 billion.
CPPIB was represented by a team from DLA Piper led by partner Susheela Rivers, the firm’s head of real estate in Asia-Pacific.
APG, a pension fund asset manager based in the Netherlands, was advised by a team from Baker & McKenzie headed by Jason Ng, Hong Kong-based corporate partner and head of the firm’s investment funds group in Hong Kong/China, with support from partner Steven Sieker, who handled tax issues.
e-Shang and its subsidiary, Kendall Square Logistics Properties (KSLP), are eyeing development opportunities in the metropolitan areas of Seoul and Busan and have already acquired two assets in Seoul that will be used to seed the JV. Over the next few years, the JV is expected to have a portfolio of institutional-grade properties with an aggregate size of more than 1.5 million square metres in gross floor area.
