Investment Company STANLIB has extended the period in which investors may apply for the STANLIB Fahari I-REIT shares to November 18, 2015 from the original stated date of November 12, 2015. The extension, which has been approved by the Capital Markets Authority, will give more time to both corporate and retail investors to invest in the region’s first property income fund. While making the announcement, STANLIB’s Fahari I-REIT CEO, Anton Borkum said: “Being the first in the market meant that we had to ensure that investors understand the attributes of this new investment vehicle in a short space of time. We have had multiple meetings with investors and have found the need to extend the offer period. The decision follows a number of requests from corporate investors to consult and prepare their applications for subscription.” The listing date for the I-REIT on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) will now be 26 November 2015. The STANLIB Fahari I-REIT allows investors to own a slice of Kenya’s lucrative Real Estate segment and will be listed on the Nairobi Securities Exchange under the recently launched Real Estate Market Segment. An I-REIT is a collective investment vehicle that allows investors to pool capital, which is then invested in a portfolio of selected properties for a return. Investors gain through capital appreciation and rental income, with the latter being distributed to unit-holders annually. 2 The I-REIT is a tax efficient vehicle, in that the income earned by the I-REIT is not taxable. The I-REIT will serve to deepen the Kenya Capital Market and become a mechanism for spreading wealth and entrenching an investment culture which is an important component of Kenya’s vision 2030. Among the investors who have committed to invest in the STANLIB Fahari I-REIT is the International Finance Corporation (IFC). The organisation, which is the private sector lending wing of the World Bank, has undertaken to subscribe for up to $15 million worth of units being sold through the IPO. “The successful establishment of REITs as a liquid financial instrument used to gain exposure to Kenyan real estate will help unlock significant capital resources to fund Kenya’s real estate gaps,” IFC said in a note disclosing the investment.
