Blackstone to make first China property purchase

Shortly after the firm revealed that it is opening an office in Beijing, Blackstone is set to acquire a commercial property in Shanghai for $158m.

The Blackstone Group is about to make its first property purchase in mainland China, acquiring a commercial property in Shanghai for 1.1 billion yuan ($158 million), official Chinese media have reported. The plaza is made up of a six story, 25,312 square meter shopping mall and commercial complex.

The purchase, made from Hong Kong-listed VXL Capital, would give Blackstone a 90 percent stake in Changshou Commercial Plaza, a development in Shanghai’s Putup district. VXL will retain a 10 percent stake in the property, according to China Securities News.

Blackstone seems to be increasing its activity and ties with China since the country’s mammoth sovereign wealth fund, China Investment Corp, invested $3 billion into the private equity firm last year. Earlier this month Blackstone chairman Steve Schwartzman revealed during a presentation at the Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference in New York that the firm had just signed the lease for a new office in Beijing. That office follows those opened recently in Tokyo, Mumbai and Hong Kong.