US private equity giant Blackstone has made a 3.1 billion Australian dollars (USD 2.4 billion) bid for office property giant Investa, the Australian-listed firm said today.
Investa Office Fund -- which has 4.0 billion Australian dollars of Australian assets under management -- said the 5.25 Australian dollars per share bid was unsolicited.
The company's board is set to "unanimously recommend" the proposal, saying it presented shareholders "with an opportunity to realise their investment... for significant value and certainty".
The bid came just over a month after Blackstone made a lower, confidential offer, Investa added.
Shares in Investa surged 10.26 percent to 5.10 Australian dollars in intra-day trading in Sydney today.
The move into the Australian real estate market follows Blackstone's purchase of an Auckland office precinct in New Zealand for 635 million New Zealand dollars (US$441 million) two weeks ago.
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